


My Hero Academia: Blindsided

by Ryoccoon



Category: Undertale (Video Game), 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia
Genre: Action & Romance, Amnesia, Complete, Complicated Relationships, Cute Midoriya Izuku, Cute Uraraka Ochako, Drama & Romance, Erotica, Established Relationship, F/M, Family, First Kiss, Flirty Takami Keigo | Hawks, Fluff, French Kissing, Friends to Lovers, Hurt/Comfort, Kirishima Eijirou is a Good Friend, Kissing at Midnight, Mild Sexual Content, Mutual Pining, Original Character(s), Pining, Protective Bakugou Katsuki, Romantic Friendship, Rough Kissing, School Dances, Sexual Content, Sexual Tension, Soft Bakugou Katsuki, Todoroki Shouto is a Dork, Unrequited Love, Wingman Ashido Mina, Yagi Toshinori | All Might is a Dork
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-25
Updated: 2020-08-25
Packaged: 2021-03-06 23:41:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 35
Words: 84,329
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26107387
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ryoccoon/pseuds/Ryoccoon
Summary: When Calliope and her two mentors travel from America to help tutor the students of U.A, their short trip will prove far more than they bargained for. Will this visit to Japan help Calliope come to terms with the cruelty of her quirk? Or will the events of her journey destroy all that she has worked so hard to achieve?Loosely based on the timeline of the anime series ft. three OC’s, two loosely influenced by Undertale characters. (You do not need to be familiar with Undertale to enjoy/follow this story.)
Kudos: 22





	1. When Juggernaut met U.A

**Author's Note:**

> This story was written by my sister. You can find her on Quotev via username BrownieBearie. :) She will be the one replying to any comments on this story.

She was glad to be off the plane. She had always hated flying. The journey from America to Japan had been a grueling 13 hours. Unlike her, her two mentors had been completely at ease for the entire trip. Sam had pretty much slept all the way through, even during the strong turbulence that had caused her to grip tightly at her arm rests til her knuckles turned white. Russ had passed the time planning lessons for when they finally arrived at their destination: U.A High. 

As they now sat on the train, speeding along the Japanese countryside on the final leg of their journey, Russ could barely contain his excitement. His enthusiastic tone had chased off any of Calliope’s initial apprehension. She now couldn’t wait to visit the prestigious school. What would the students be like? How would their customs differ from the ones back home in America? The only person she and her two mentors were familiar with was the teacher Mr Aizawa. He had visited her own school back in the USA to give a talk on Japanese Hero laws. She remembered him to be quiet, laid back and fatigued- not all too dissimilar from her eldest mentor, Sam. However, it was Aizawa’s wonderful quirk that had made her such a huge fan of him. She was the only person she could maintain a conversation with whilst looking in their eye...

She knew that the students were a fair bit younger than them, but from what she had witnessed in the footage she had watched from the sports festival, they were all super talented. Her anxiety suddenly came flooding back.

“So, Calli? Ready to teach these kids a thing or two?” Russ was grinning at her over his notebook, it’s pages covered in rough sketches of what appeared to be complex obstacle courses. His honey coloured eyes glinted in the midday sun, clearly unaffected by jet-lag though his usually pristine white hair looked uncharacteristically disheveled. 

Calliope forced a smile, the table between her and her mentors hiding the way her fingers toyed anxiously with the hem of her shirt. They had decided not to travel in their Hero attire. 

“Sure! It’ll be fun, right?” Her voice couldn’t have sounded less convinced. The U.A students all looked so powerful. Some of their quirks looked almost as strong as Sam and Russ’. Her quirk couldn’t possibly compare...

“Too right it will!” He chimed and he thumped his sleeping brother on the shoulder. The older, but noticeable shorter brother grunted and rubbed at his tired-looking eyes. Though he must have slept for at least 11 hours of their 15 hour round trip, he still maintained the dark circles beneath his eyes Calliope had grown so accustomed to seeing. She couldn’t help but smile when he turned them in her direction.

“Yeah Calli...” he yawned, stretching widely til his joints popped, “show some enthusiasm.”

*

Deku eyes glistened, excitement oozing from him in tears of joy as his hands trembled, clutching his notebook. Mr Aizawa had just announced that UA would be receiving three guests from America- two professional heroes and their apprentice. The news had left class 1A a buzz with exhilaration as they sat impatiently through their morning classes. Sure, they had met professional heroes before, but never had they met heroes from another country. 

“Ooo I wonder who it could be?!” squealed Mina as their final, morning class came to an end. “I don’t really know of any American heroes!” 

“I bet I know who does though!” Ochako piped up. Suddenly the whole class seemed to turn on Deku and he flushed deeply under their collectively attentive gaze. 

“W-well...” he began, holding up his hands as bodies began to lean towards him, “it could be any number of people!” 

From somewhere behind the group that seemed to be enclosing in on Deku like a dust cloud, came an unimpressed grunt.

“It better be someone good. I don’t want some flashy Americans wasting my time.” 

Bakugo was swinging on his chair, one foot on the desk and both hands in his pockets. He was the only student in the class who didn’t appear to be overflowing with anticipation.

“I imagine UA will have invited people around our age. Maybe some of the more up-and-coming heroes?” Mused Tsu, her finger placed idly on her chin in thought. 

“Yeah, I guess you’re right.” Deku hummed as he pondered the possibilities. There were a number of American Schools, the most prestigious being The Juggernaut Academy. He tried to think of any of the notable heroes that had recently come from that school. Before he could whittle down his options however, another excited squeal from Mina marked the arrival of Mr Aizawa. The class scrambled back to their seats, eager to meet their guests. 

“As I mentioned to you all this morning, you will now be spending the afternoon with three heroes who have all graduated from The Juggernaut Academy in America.”

Deku praised himself internally for his sound judgement. Of course UA would liaise with the only the best schools. 

“But we’ve met the Big Three not long ago.” Stated Jiro, her arms folded on her desk, “how are these three any different?” 

Aizawa sighed “unlike the previous heroes you have met, these three have made a name for themselves in the states for working solely as a team.”

This information caused the curious Deku to continue his inner monologue. Surely all heroes worked as a team? It wasn’t unheard of for heroes in Japan to collaborate. What made these three so different? Did they simply refuse to work alone or were they in fact unable to? Did their quirks rely too heavily on each other’s to be able to function alone? Perhaps they’re powers complimented one another’s so well that they almost manifested themselves like single unit. 

His jumbled thoughts were cut short as Aizawa continued.

“While they’re here, they will teach you how to work together in a series of team building exercises.” 

Most of the class began to murmur in silent glee. Bakugo, on the other-hand, clearly wasn’t pleased with the idea of working too closely again with others in his class. 

“So, make sure you pay attention and work hard. They’ll be staying with us for just under a month.”

As he said his final words, he shuffled back into a sleeping bag as footsteps sounded down the hallway.

Mineta was bouncing in his seat, his eyes wide with fantasy. “I hope it’s a trio of hot babes!” He practically drooled at the thought. 

Kaminari echoed the sentiment as the footsteps grew louder. “Oh hell yeah! Three, American bomb shells!” 

The excitement in the classroom grew with every approaching footstep. The handle of the classroom door began to turn, as did everyone’s heads in its direction. It swung open on it’s hinges and in walked, not three hot babes, but one tall, muscular young man followed by a short, slouching figure in a hood and finally, (Mineta and Kaminari wheezed happily), a beautiful young woman with long, matcha coloured hair.


	2. Bone-a-fied Heroes

As the trio turned and positioned themselves at the front of the class, Deku almost gasped in delight. Although he had no idea who the woman was, he recognised the two young men that stood before them. They were the brothers who called themselves the Skelebros due to their skeleton-like features and bone-wielding quirks.

Had Deku not known that they were siblings prior to witnessing them, he would never have guessed from their appearance that they were related. The one he knew to be called Russ was the younger brother. But he towered over his older sibling who’s short stature wasn’t improved by his idle posture. His name was Sam and, if it wasn’t for his lazy attitude, he could have been listed as one of the top 10 most powerful heroes in America. His inability to attend any press conferences or compete in any competitions meant that he could never truly be ranked. Images of fights between the skelebros and villains filmed on mobile phones and other handheld devices flashed in Deku’s mind. He knew that the older brother had an extremely powerful ultimate move. Would he get to witness it today? 

Excitement sat in his throat like a bubble about to burst. He had so many questions but he swallowed them down and instead focused his energy into studying their unusual appearance. The skelebros both had eyes line Mina where instead of whites, there was vivid black. However, Russ’ irises were a warm hazel and Sam’s were a piercing blue, noticeable even from beneath his hooded gaze. They both shared a snowy white head of hair. Russ’ was sleek and shining under the fluorescent lights of the classroom. Sam’s was noticeably messier, poking out at odd angles from beneath his white beanie hat and hood. 

“Well hello students of UA!” Bellowed Russ jovially. Sam visibly winced at the enthusiastically loud salutation. 

“I am Russ Gaster, otherwise known as The great Papyrus. And this-“ he slapped a hand on his brother’s shoulder, eliciting another wince, “is my older brother, Sam Gaster.” 

Sam gave a lopsided grin that caused the girls in the classroom to giggle softly. 

Deku saw Mina lean backwards towards Tsu and faintly heard her whisper how handsome Sam was. Tsu didn’t look convinced but he heard her mention “well he’s got cool eyes like you, Mina.” 

“And my cool dress sense!” The pink girl added.

“Call me Sans,” he drawled, his hands dug into the pockets of his oversized jacket. Another round of quiet giggles. 

“Together, we are the Skelebros!” Russ declared proudly, a hand on his hip. 

Indeed, Deku thought, their pale complexion, snow-white hair and black eyes gave them an overall skeletal appearance. Though, as Papyrus flexed his broad shoulders proudly, the younger brother’s physique was far from that of a skeleton. Sans’ was hard to distinguish from beneath his oversized attire that Mina seemed to like so much.

Tsu croaked in acknowledgment of their identities.

“I’ve heard of you! You’re the two heroes who can create bone-like projectiles and weaponry from thin air!” 

“Correct!” He confirmed, raising a finger. “Although, it’s not quite from thin air and, as with all quirks, we both have our drawbacks. But you’ll learn more about all that later.”

He turned to look at the matcha haired girl, peering at her easily over the top of his brother’s head. 

“And this young lady here is Calliope.” 

Kaminari and Mineta’s eyes roamed shamelessly over her lean and slender frame. None of the Americans seemed to be wearing hero costumes. Although, Deku faintly remembered Sans always seemed to be wearing normal clothes in all the footage he’d watched on the internet. Another image of Sans’ powerful, special move flashed before his eyes. What was it called again? He cursed himself for not remembering. He would have to take lots of notes today. 

Perhaps it was because she wasn’t wearing her hero costume that the woman called Calliope stood before them all so timidly. She hadn’t even raised her eyes from the patch of floor she seemed to have been so fixated on. Her long hair hung over her eyes, obscuring her face slightly. Despite that, Deku could make out what looked like mint coloured scales dappled across her bronzed skin. 

“Calli has been our apprentice for over 6 months now. Despite being relatively new to hero work, you’ll soon discover just how strong she is. Don’t let her bashfulness fool you!” 

Deku noticed how Calliope’s shoulders hunched at her mentor’s words and, despite being slightly taller than Sans, had shrunk down to almost match his height. Deku found it hard to believe Papyrus’ words and wonder whether Calliope felt the same way. 

“So, unless you have any questions, we can all head outside and get started with this afternoon’s activity!” 

Although he had a million and one questions, Deku chose to hold back. He figured that the Americans would surely answer most of them in due time and he was far too eager to see what they had in store for them outside.

Ochako, however, raised her hand. 

“How did you choose your hero names? Are they just a variation of you real names-Sam and Russ? Coz’ Sans and Papyrus don’t really sound like they have anything to do with your quirks?” 

This time it was Papyrus’ turn to slump his shoulders while his older brother gave a low chuckle. Even Calliope smiled, her eyes flitting momentarily from the ground to Sans and back. 

“Well...” Papyrus began with a sigh, “my brother here was inspired by two characters from an indie video game he played when we were kids.”

He cast a glance at Sans as he said this. The older brother grinned his lazy, lopsided grin again and when he cast it in Ochako’s direction, her already pink cheeks pinkened even more so. 

“What’s a nerd gonna do, heh?” 

Deku cringed as he saw Bakugo give a cocky sneer at Sans’ casual use of his favourite insult. Though, he may have imagined the flash of gas-fire blue that dashed Sans’ eyes shortly after. 

No one else in the class had any other questions after that, they were all as equally excited as Deku to head into the grounds and start the afternoons activities. 

It was a particularly humid day outside. The clouds were a bright white sheet across the entire sky, almost as blinding as the sun it concealed. As they headed towards the training grounds, Papyrus informed them that their first session would involve an obstacle course. Though, as they approached the enormous, looming structure that broke up the horizon in tall columns and winding, jagged paths, Deku noted that it did not look like any conventional obstacle course. And, as they drew nearer, his suspicions were confirmed- the entire thing was built from bones. Large ones the size of whale bones formed thin, precarious bridges suspended high up in the air, while collections of smaller bones created intricate climbing walls and rickety paths. Below, sharp bones protruded menacingly from the earth, threatening to claim those that lost their footing. The entire thing looked eerie beneath the overcast sky. 

“Today!” Began Papyrus, in a tone that reminded Deku of Iida, “you will be working in small groups to complete the course I have constructed.” He gestured proudly at his nightmarish creation, his black eyes wide, his honey coloured irises wild.

Calliope stood beside him, her eyes had finally lifted, though they were cast towards the course and seemed to avoid the group of students entirely. Her hair had fallen back from her face to reveal the iridescent scales that framed her eyes and cheek bones. They caught the light and Deku found himself staring. It was only when she turned and their eyes briefly met that he felt a jolt run through him. She had eyes like a pit viper, startlingly yellow, broken by a dark slit. She broke the gaze in an instant, turning away bashfully to cower back behind her curtain of long hair. Deku flushed and turned away from her a second after, only to flush even harder when he saw that Sans had been watching him. He was smirking, hands in his jacket pockets, and flashed him a knowing wink. Deku was glad to see that no one had witnessed this awkward exchanged as they were all staring apprehensively up at the mass of bones before them. 

“Teams of three will do. Choose who you team up with carefully! Think who’s quirks are most compatible with yours for this particular event!” 

A hand shot up from the crowd and Iida spoke loudly and clearly, “there are 20 of us! We will need another person for this event!” 

Papyrus smiled, “not to worry!” He gripped Calliope’s shoulder, more gently than he had his brother’s back in the classroom, and shook her encouragingly.

“Calli will be joining you!” 

“And miss Calliope? May we ask what your quirk is?” Iida continued, his hand still raised.

Calliope hugged at her arms and shifted sheepishly into Papyrus in a somewhat feeble attempt to hide in her mentor’s shadow. 

“My quirk won’t be helpful in an event like this,” she answered softly. Her forehead was almost pressed against Papyrus’ shoulder. He seemed unfazed by her obvious discomfort and continued to beam out at the bemused UA students. Sans, however reached over, a hand finally leaving the pocket of his jacket to snake around Calliope’s waist and pull her out from behind his brother and into his own sanctuary. The action made Deku feel even more embarrassed about their earlier exchange. Had he been caught unknowingly staring at a pro hero’s girlfriend? But as he saw Calliope bristled against Sans’ sudden touch, he disregarded the thought entirely. What was with this girl? He tried to think back to his knowledge on American heroes but he didn’t recognise her from anything. Aizawa had mentioned that this trio had made a name for themselves by working together. Yet, as he eyed their conflicting body language, Deku couldn’t quite believe this team were anything less than mismatched. 

“Don’t let our Calli here fool you all,” Sans grinned as he held her ridged frame against his. “She is an amazing athlete. I can guarantee she can out maneuver everyone here.”

Unlike his younger brother, who spoke with assertive clarity and undeniable warmth, Sans spoke in a low drawl that was as equally chilling as it was soothing. Like a cold breeze on a hot day, depending on the circumstances, it could be a welcome addition or ruin your day. 

“Sans is right,” continued Papyrus, his voice like the sun- bright and fiery. “And it serves as a reminder to you all that, though some quirks will help, this course will also rely on physical strength, agility and endurance. As well as trust in one another. Now...”

Sans rubbed the small of Calliope’s back before gently pushing her towards the class as Papyrus finished.

“Get into your groups!”


	3. Fractured Bones

The class, who were all clearly familiar with one another’s abilities, didn’t take too long to begin forming groups. Calliope felt her heart drop. Though a few people cast curious glances her way, no one approached her. Part of her was kind of glad. Maybe there was still a chance she could avoid any interactions. Her previous excitement on the train here had vanished not long after they had entered the classroom upon which Calliope was immediately reminded of just how cruel her quirk was. How she longed to gaze out at all their faces and look into their eyes as they asked her questions...

“Calliope,” came a cool, male voice that snapped her from her daydream. 

“We’d like to team up with you, if that’s okay?”

She chanced a look towards the two people that had approached her and noted than the other person, due to the generous swell of her chest, was a girl. The other was a boy with an angry looking scar across one eye. She immediately wondered how he got it and thought about her own scar. It was barely visible now that her scales had spread, but beneath them she knew there lie a long, thin, white line left their by a blade that had tried to take her eyes.

“My name is Todoroki and this is Yaoyorozu.” 

The large chested girl continued, her voice was assertive. She spoke the way Calliope wished she could. 

“My quirk is creation. I believe it will be extremely useful for a course such as this. Todoroki can wield both fire and ice-“

“Fire won’t prove much use here. The bones are stronger than they look.” Calliope cut in, she couldn’t hold back the words. Her quirk depended almost entirely on strategy. She spoke in hushed tones, her eyes flitting everywhere but their faces.

“Strong ice will most definitely help though. If I know anything about Papyrus, it’s that this structure will not remain stationary.”

“You suspect it will move?” Todoroki inquired, casting a look towards the course. Calliope used this opportunity to get a good look at him. He was handsome, with his hair in two colours to match his contrasting abilities. The girl was also very attractive and almost as tall as Papyrus. Her figure was rudely generous for someone so young. As a teenager, Calliope had been self conscious about her lithe figure. But at 22 years old, Calliope soon discovered that her thin, supple figure was far more suited to her style of combat, especially now that her training with Papyrus had strengthened her muscles. 

“I’m sure of it. The course will require speed and precision.” 

Yaoyorozu hummed in thought. 

Around them, the rest of the class finally settled into their definitive groups. Papyrus allowed them to walk around the structure so that they could formulate possible routes. But Calliope knew that it was a pointless exercise considering it was all likely to shift once the first group made their attempt. 

And, as a group consisting of a boy called Tokoyami and two girls, Mina and Tsu approached the starting point, her suspicions had been correct. As soon as the pink hair girl had landed on the first platform after having been launched upwards by the other girl’s frog-like tongue, the obstacle course began to glow blue in places where bones began to rise and fall, swipe and sway. 

“Hey! No fair!” She cried as she shifted her weight to regain her balance. Her two teammates had joined her on the first platform and narrowly dodged a spinning bone. Despite their initial surprise, the three of them managed to complete the course after some close calls. Luckily, both girls were super agile and Tokoyami’s impressive quirk had proved a great defence against any bone-shaped projectiles.

The next group weren’t so lucky. Despite the benefit of Sero’s tape ability to bind any moving structures or reinforce precarious areas and Mineta’s ability to climb using his grape-like balls, Shouji’s bulky frame and their collective lack of agility caused the three of them to plummet to the ground half way through. The bones that protruded from the earth and threatened to impale them as they fell, retracted just in time. Sans’ low chuckle floated over Mineta’s thankful sobs; “C’mon, they were just a joke.” 

With the threat of certain death now lifted, the next few groups all did far better. Deku, Iida and Ochako gave an impressive performance. Their combined speed and ability to defy gravity meant that they easily avoided most of the course and instead used their abilities to propel themselves over it.

The next team, Hagakure, Ojiro and Aoyama also completed the course, although it was mainly thanks to Ojiro’s guidance. They didn’t set a good time but Papyrus praised their teamwork and great communication. 

Jirou, Kouda and Satou gave a valiant attempt and almost made the finish line had a particularly delicate part of the course not cracked beneath the combined weight of the two males.

Finally, it was time for Calliope’s team. As she approached the starting line with her teammates, she cast a subtle look around for her mentors. Papyrus had been running up and down alongside the course with every team, calling out encouragement and advice the whole time. The lean man hadn’t even broken a sweat. And neither had his brother. But that was simply due to the fact that he was laid in the grass, meters away from the action, under the shade of a tree. Hands behind his head and legs crossed at the ankles- the picture of ease. When Papyrus announced their names as they readied themselves at the starting line, Calliope couldn’t help but feel disappointed that Sans hadn’t even raised his head to look her way. He was fast asleep again most likely. 

“Ready you three?” He inquired, stop watch in hand. They nodded in unison and on Papyrus’ mark, shot towards the first raised platform, propelled forwards by the jets Yaoyorozu had created from her calves along an ice path made by Todoroki. They traveled in a line with Yaoyorozu at the back, her hands placed against Todoroki’s shoulders while he supported Calliope. Her feet were placed firmly on his bent left leg, her arm gripping his left shoulder. She crouched into him like a coiled snake ready to strike, the end of the zip wire Yaoyorozu had also created wrapped around her shoulders. As they reached the top of the platform, the pounding bones shattered Todoroki’s ice path with ease, halting both he and Yaoyorozu. However, the momentum of their ascent had given Calliope enough propulsion to push herself from Todoroki’s firm thigh and soar over the next, treacherous part of the course with ease. She landed deftly on another platform further down and secured the zip wire. All she had to do next was watch as her other two teammates zoomed towards her, not having to give a second thought to the tricky section below them. Like Deku and Iida, they had managed to use their quirks and abilities to avoid entire sections of the course. 

When they crossed the finish line with only Todoroki’s bruised thigh as an injury, Papyrus and the others had congratulated their impressive performance. 

“Spectacular performance, you three! That was an impressive display of your quirks!” 

He turned to Calliope, “and Calli, your agility never ceases to amaze me.” 

She felt her heart swell at his comment. She cast another glance over at the tree where Sans lay. He was still fast asleep. She sighed lightly and pretended she hadn’t heard when the boy called Mineta began to babble to Todoroki about how lucky he was to have been sandwiched between two babes at the start. 

“Yeah dude! That hottie was basically sat in your lap!” The boy called Kaminari gushed. 

“Yeah yeah, whatever!” A gruff voice cut in through the excited chatter. 

“It’s our turn now. Let’s get this pointless exercise over with already!” 

It was the boy called Bakugo team’s turn. He grabbed Kaminari and dragged him towards the starting line as his other teammate Kirishima followed. 

“Now remember...” Papyrus began, as he reset his stopwatch, “you all need to cross the finish line together to count it as a victory.” 

Deku and his team currently held first position, Calliope’s team were second while Mina’s team were third.

“Yeah Bakugo. So no blasting off on your own.” Kirishima quipped as he got into a starting pose alongside his teammates. Bakugo looked like a loaded gun. And he might as well have been because the moment Papyrus hit the start button on his stop watch, the sneering teen blasted himself upwards onto the first platform and then immediately blew the next section of the course to splinters. 

His teammates scrambled after him as he strode through his path of destruction. 

“You call this a challenge?” He called as he obliterated any incoming projectile.

Calliope chanced a look at Papyrus who simply looked on amused. As she watched the dust and ash scatter about them, she knew that her mentors could easily rebuild the course in a heartbeat and with every cloud of fine particles that rose about them, the brothers could use it to construct more and more bones to use as structures or projectiles. The aftermath of destruction was what fed their power after all. Dust, ash and fine debris is what the skelebros used to create their strong bone-like creations. Though the UA students clearly didn’t know that and Papyrus seemed far too entertained by the total annihilation of his work to mention it to them. And of course, Sans had an extra little something hidden up his sleeve...

Another glance in his direction showed that his ability to sleep through anything still rang true. Though the tree above him shook with every bang, he continued to doze contently beneath its shaking leaves. 

Bakugo and his team finished in no time and crossed the finish line with a backdrop of flames and ash behind them. 

“Well done! You three finished first!” Papyrus declared, as a large column came crashing down behind a scowling Bakugo. As Papyrus reached to take Bakugo’s shoulder, as he had done with others so often, the ash blackened boy swatted his hand away angrily. 

“You traveled all this way to make us run a damn obstacle course?” He growled. 

“I thought you were brought here to teach us something, or challenge us?” 

The class had gone very silent. 

“The only thing you three have taught me so far is that you’re timid, weak and lazy!” 

Calliope didn’t fail to notice that each one of those adjectives had a specific person in mind. She had the burning urge to look him dead in the eye. 

“Kacchan, that’s enough!” Deku piped up. 

“Shut it, nerd!” Bakugo shot back “I saw your face when these losers walked in! You looked so excited!” He rounded on Papyrus “but none of you have even shown us your quirks properly! Or even told us anything about them! Your damn brother has been sleeping this whole time!” 

It was then that Calliope felt a presence at her shoulder. She didn’t need to look to know it was Sans. 

“So kiddo, obstacle courses ain’t your thing.”

Bakugo swung his angry face towards him. 

“Damn straight they’re not! They’re for dogs and their dumb owners!”

“Right.” Sans answered with a lift of his shoulders. “Well why dontcha let this dog throw you a bone, eh?” 

He grinned his trademark grin, hands still pocketed, under-eyes still dark despite his nap. Bakugo growled, unamused by the pun. This only made Sans chuckle. 

“Okay. Well I got another question for ya. Do you wanna have a bad time? Because if you do chose to fight me and see what makes us three worthy of coming to visit you guys, then you’re really not gonna like what happens next.”


	4. Blaster

Deku had tried to dissuade Bakugo from going ahead with Sans’ proposition. They had fought professional heroes before and had never come out victorious. They were still students after all. 

Although the American trio were all still young, being in their early to mid 20s, they still had way more experience than they did. But Bakugo remained unconvinced. And, if he was to be completely honest with himself, Deku couldn’t blame him. Though the obstacle course had been fun, it hadn’t been too challenging for most of UA students’ abilities. Most of them had completed it or come very close. Sans and Papyrus hadn’t really showcased any of their own abilities to the class and Calliope, though was clearly a skilled athlete, remained a mystery in terms of what her quirk could be and how she fit in with the two brothers. If Deku hadn’t known of their exploits thanks to the minimal amount of leaked footage on the internet, Deku would probably be questioning UA’s decision to invite them to Japan too. 

It seemed the rest of the class, regardless of what they had thought about the obstacle course, seemed eager to see the fight. Papyrus seemed quite reluctant, as did Iida who ranted the whole time Papyrus and Sans cleared the remains of the obstacle course from the terrain, the bones turning back to dust on their command. 

“I’m sorry to have to have to question your judgement, but I do not see how having a student fight a professional hero, just to prove a point, is at all a good idea.” 

Sans shrugged as he turned the final cluster of bones to ash. 

“The kid wants to see our quirks in action. I’ll go easy on him. As for me, he’ll never even land a single hit.” 

Deku thought back to all the times he had seen Bakugo fight. He not only had explosive power, but explosive speed and an explosive temper. With that in mind, he found it hard to believe that Sans would come out of the fight with his snow-white hair left unsigned.

Iida was also equally unconvinced. It showed clearly on his face. 

“My brother and I usually fight together, along with Calliope now that she has joined us. But three verses one seems a bit excessive, despite Bakugo’s clear confidence in his abilities.” Papyrus stated to the class as the two contenders positioned themselves at each end of the arena. 

“At some stage during our stay, we will demonstrate how the three of us combine our abilities to work almost as a single unit.” He folded his arms as he watched Bakugo stretch his arms and legs. Sans simply scratched beneath his beanie hat. Deku noticed the laces of his heavily scuffed sneakers were untied. He looked the furthest thing from a professional hero that one could imagine. Unlike his brother Papyrus, who wore bold primary colours and looked somewhat striking even despite the fact he wasn’t wearing a hero costume, Sans looked like a some sort of hip hop star that had stumbled in late from a party. His oversized blue hoody and his slightly creased white t-shirt hid any hint at what his physique might be underneath. His black and white sweatpants had leaves still stuck to them from when he had taken a nap beneath a tree earlier. Bakugo on the other hand looked as formidable as ever, even in his UA uniform. 

“But considering how impatient Bakugo seems to be with us revealing our abilities, I’ll allow my brother to show you why he could potentially make one the world’s best heroes.” 

Mina bounced on the balls of her feet.

“Really? No way! Why isn’t he?”

“Because he’s too lazy for his own good!” Papyrus grunted. Sans seemed to yawn on cue. 

“So how come you’re not one of the top 10? How do your powers differ from your brother’s ?” Ochako asked in curious innocence. 

“Well, we both share the ability to create the bone-like weapons from the dust, ash and fine debris in the area.” 

“So, what you’re saying is every time Bakugo uses his quirk, he’s basically just making Sans a bunch of ammo?” Kaminari pointed out.

Papyrus nodded.

“My brother favours long ranged attacks while I excel in more hand to hand combat. However, the main difference between him and I, and the reason why Sans is so much more powerful, is because he was born with one extra ability.”

Deku felt his heart skip a beat. Sans’ ultimate move.He still couldn’t remember what it was called. 

But before anyone could inquire any further about the Skelebros’ powers, Sans’ low voice rang out as a single word.

“Ready?” 

Bakugo snarled. “Of course I’m ready! And don’t you dare hold anything back!” 

And without even returning Sans’ question, Bakugo bolted towards his opponent and unleashed an almighty blast from his palm. The explosion was blinding, yet it’s flash hadn’t made contact with its target. Instead, it had collided with a wall of now smouldering bones. Through the hole the blast had created, Deku could no longer see Sans. Perhaps the defence had not been strong enough. Perhaps he had been blasted into the field. 

“Heh, not bad, kiddo.” 

Bakugo span around and instinctively launched another blast towards where Sans’ voice had come from. But the American hero dodged seamlessly and, with a swipe of his left hand, launched a shower of sharp, bone-shaped projectiles towards him. Bakugo managed to evade the worst of them with ease as he blasted himself skywards, though one had nicked his shoulder and torn straight though his uniform. The rest of the bones pierced the ground and remained there, meaning Bakugo had to redirect his landing to avoid them. 

“Did I getcha?” Sans quipped, as he watched Bakugo glance at his bleeding shoulder. 

“Bastard...” he simply growled back. 

Deku couldn’t help but register the huge contrast between their body language. As ever, Bakugo was as a vision of sweat, sneers and muscle crouched over like an angry bear ready to swipe. Sans, on the other hand, was as cool and as calm as an ocean breeze, though Deku suspected that that breeze could easily turn into a storm. Bakugo, though he said nothing, seemed to internally curse Sans. If looks could kill, Sans would be dead where he stood. 

An angry yell was what came next, followed by another huge explosion. Amazingly, Sans appeared from the smoke unscathed, somehow having dodged the attack once again. This time, however, his left hand and iris glowed the same gas-fire blue that Deku had seen flash across his features back in the classroom when Bakugo had laughed at him for referring to himself as a nerd. Sans leapt backwards and, with another swipe of his glowing hand, shot another barrage of bones towards Bakugo. There were so many of them due to the amount dust on the terrain. 

Bakugo managed to blast away most of them and dodge others, but as Sans swiped his hand over and over again, some projectiles inevitably made contact with Bakugo’s body. His shoulders and ankles were heavily cut. They didn’t seem deep and Deku began to wonder. 

“What’s Sans’ strategy here?” He asked, tearing his eyes away from the fight to face Papyrus as Bakugo fired another series of blasts that Sans blocked with his own series of bone-barricades. 

“Sans is far more skilled at precision-based attacks. He favours smaller, precise offensive strategies that wear down opponents like a matador at a bullfight.” 

Deku considered this for a moment. If Sans wanted to test Bakugo’s endurance, then they were in for a long fight. Bakugo was the type of hero that would willingly sacrifice his own body to win a fight. A fact that Ochako pointed out to Calliope as the two watched the battle side by side. 

Calliope squinted as three more bones sliced into Bakugo’s ankles, the rest impaled the already bone-riddled ground. Bakugo had to not only aim his blasts at Sans, but at the ground to allow room for him to land safely. As he did so, however, his sliced ankles trembled on impact. 

“By using smaller, but more precise attacks, Sans allows himself to conserve energy.” Papyrus smirked as he watched Bakugo’s next blast falter. Sans had almost cut away the sleeves of his uniform entirely. Blood stained his upper torso, his arms sagged a little as he fired two more blasts. Sans shielded himself behind another wall of bones. They turned to dust, ready to be transformed back into another series of projectiles that launched themselves in a showering counter attack. 

“Conserve energy?” Deku echoed as Bakugo narrowly missed landing in the stray bones that had struck the ground. His legs wobbled on his weakened ankles. Calliope shifted uncomfortably on her own. 

“Yes. In case he ever needs to use his ultimate move.” Papyrus grinned.

With that, Deku’s eyes sparkled with excitement for, before them on the battle field, Bakugo had finally fallen backwards from an awkward landing. Sans was advancing slowly, right hand in his pocket, left held before him with his fingers curled. He didn’t look particularly intimidating, despite his lopsided grin and glowing eye. 

But the huge silhouette behind him did. It shadowed him and it’s presence seemed to have shocked Bakugo momentarily into stillness. 

It was that of a beastly skull the size of a small car. It’s eye sockets contained irises that glowed the same shade of blue as Sans’ left eye. As Sans approached, he flexed his haloed fingers and the mouth of the beast opened as a bright orb of energy built between its sharp rows of teeth. Bakugo made an attempt to stand but his limbs, from the hundreds of injuries they had endured, gave way beneath him. 

“W-What is that thing?!” Sero gasped as he and the whole class stared at the dragon-like head that floated above Sans. 

“It’s his Ultimate attack!” Deku declared in awe and, in his excitement at finally witnessing it in person, he finally remembered it’s name. “A Gasterblaster!” 

“No way!” Cried Mina, her hands balled into fists, “he’s not really going to use it on Bakugo is he?” 

Papyrus looked momentarily concerned, “erm...” 

“GasterBlaster?” Bakugo spat, glaring daggers at his opponent’s grinning face.

“Just when I thought you couldn’t get any lamer!” 

The ball of energy in the beast’s mouth grew in size. Sans’ fingers twitched in time with his eye. His low, eerily calm voice carried on the wind.

“Birds are singing. Flowers are blooming. On days like these...”

Bakugo roared in frustration as he heaved himself upright only to stumble again. Blood squeezed from his wounds as he willed his muscles to obey him. But, much like a bull that had collapsed beneath the matador’s cruel onslaught, Bakugo simply couldn’t make any further advance towards his opponent who now stood just meters away. Sans continued.

“Kids like you...”

“Papyrus! We should intervene! Bakugo is more likely to destroy himself than lose like this!” Cried Iida. 

“...should be...”

And, as if on cue, sparks began to dance about Bakugo’s hands and Deku’s breath caught- Kacchan was prepping a blast that would most certainly take both he and Sans out. 

But Papyrus didn’t move. And neither did Bakugo, even though Deku was sure he was readying his explosion. Instead, the class gasped as the lithe silhouette of a third figure moved swiftly along the charred terrain towards the stand-off. 

“...burning...”

A flash of green through the wisps of smoke. 

“...in hell.”

And in a blink of an eye, Calliope had appeared behind Sans, though her eyes were locked on a startled looking Bakugo. She held his gaze while she snaked her arms around her mentor, one hand covered his glowing eye while the other gentle took hold of his flexed hand. The class watched with open mouths as Calliope drew hers close to Sans’ ear. She whispered something they couldn’t hear and his usually slumped shoulders immediately went ridgid. The GasterBlaster disappeared in a puff of ash and floated away on the breeze. The glow from Sans’ hand and eye had equally vanished as Calliope released him. 

“What happened?” asked Ochako. 

“What did she do?!” Followed Mina. 

Papyrus remained unusually silent again, although he was still smiling. Heaving a sigh, he unfolded his arms and began to walk onto the battleground and towards Bakugo and his brother. Class 1A exchanged glances then took off after Papyrus who had almost reached the peculiar scene. 

Calliope had positioned herself next to an oddly Ridgid Sans. The two of them had their eyes fixated on Bakugo who was equally still. His expression remained the startled look he had housed earlier. In fact, his entire body hadn’t moved a single inch. Deku wondered if he had been shocked into submission by Sans’ attempt at his Ultimate move. But instead, as the class encircled the three people in question, Papyrus spoke up. 

“That’s enough, Calli.” He placed his hands on his hips and cast a bemused glance between his older brother and Bakugo. He chuckled at the stiff posture the former had. When he poked at his brother’s arm, he didn’t react. 

“Wait a minute...” Deku began as Calliope tore her eyes from Bakugo’s and cast her gaze back to the ground, “Y-you’re the hero Medusa!” 

He had heard of her before! Only, he hadn’t recognised her before because she usually always wore a viper-head visor that protected people from her gaze until she chose to activate it. Like the Skelebros, there was very little footage available of her speaking about her quirk, so the information on it was only down to speculation. 

As soon as Calliope had broken her connection with Bakugo, he immediately gasped for air, blinking hard. 

“W-What the hell did you do to me?” He roared, once again trying to get to his feet. He shuddered and winced. Upon seeing his friend suffer, Kirishima strode over to help him stand. Initially, Bakugo had swatted his hand away but when Papyrus had offered his instead, Bakugo chose to accept Kirishima’s. The red haired boy hoisted the weakened Bakugo to his feet, supporting him against his shoulder.

“I used my temporary petrification quirk on you,” Calliope informed, her voice stronger than Deku had previously heard her speak. She closed her eyes and lifted her head, turning it towards Deku. 

“You’re correct. I have been appointed the hero name Medusa by the American public. Although, I’d prefer to be called by my name.”

Although her eyes were closed, Deku blushed under her lidded stare. 

“Wow!” Sero exclaimed, “so you can freeze people just by looking at them?” 

It explained why she chose to never look at people when they spoke to her. It’s why Bakugo had mistaken her to be timid. Or at least she had been upon meeting them all for the first time. But as she went on to explain her quirk in more detail, her soft voice grew in confidence. Papyrus seemed to relish the fact as he smiled broadly at her. Deku imagined that improving her self-esteem may have been part of her training with them. 

“I can render people immobile so long as I look them in the eye,” she informed, opening her eyes to reveal their serpentine quality but keeping her gaze directed from anyone’s line of sight. Deku noticed a lot of students had equally began to avoid looking at her. 

“Then what about him!” Bakugo yelled, raising a finger to point at Sans who still hadn’t moved an inch and who’s eyes were beginning to water. 

“You approached him from behind! He never saw you coming! What did you say to him?” His body shook angrily as Kirishima shifted his feet to steady them both. 

“Calm down, bro! Whatever she said, she totally stopped him from blasting you with that huge dragon-cannon thing!” 

Kirishima’s words did little to calm his quaking friend. 

“Huh?! I could’ve easily blasted him away!” He roared.

“Precisely!” Papyrus finally spoke. “Calliope did well to stop to both when she did. You both looked like you were ready to blast each other to Timbuktu!” 

Another growl from the blond UA boy. 

“Although, I’d like to hope that Sans wasn’t really going to use his ultimate attack on a teenager.” He prodded his sibling hard in the arm again causing the tears that had formed in his unblinking eyes to roll down his cheeks. 

“So what did you say to him?” Asked Mina, eyeing the crying older sibling with interest. 

Calliope sighed. “It’s the second part of my quirk. If I can get close enough to you to whisper your name in your ear, I can petrify you permanently.” 

The class gasped and all turned to look at the petrified brother. 

“You mean he’s going to stay like that forever?” Mina squealed, eyeing his tear-stained face with despair. She clearly wanted to have at least one conversation with the handsome hero. 

Papyrus chuckled. “Fear not, students. Calliope will bring him back to us eventually. But in the meantime he can remain like this as punishment for going so rough on a student. Right, dear brother?”

More tears trickled from the older sibling’s eyes. Bakugo grunted another declaration that he would have defeated him had Calliope not intervened. 

“How do you do that?” Deku asked Calliope, wishing he had his notebook with him. As soon as this lesson was over, he would have to rush back to his dorm to add all three American heroes and their quirks to his notes. 

Calliope went back to looking sheepish, the colour in her cheeks deepened. 

“I-I erm...” She stuttered, and cast a pained expression towards her petrified mentor. 

“It’s nothing to be shy about, Calli! They’re all around the age to start dating and such!” Papyrus quipped, causing a few of the students to raise their brows. 

Calliope closed her eyes and sighed.

“I have to kiss him.” She grumbled sadly. 

From somewhere in the circle, Mineta’s wheezing could be heard. 

“No way! Then you can whisper in my ear anytime you want!” Blurted Kaminari, only to be immediately struck by Jirou. 

Papyrus just laughed. “Fantasise all you want, boys. But I can assure you that petrification isn’t to be taken lightly. I’m sure your class mate Bakugo can confirm!”

Deku glanced over at the boy in question. He did look rather pale after Calliope had broken her gaze from him and he had only been petrified for a minute tops. Sans had been immobilised for almost 10 minutes now. Though the whites of his eyes were naturally black, they way they streamed with tears betrayed just how painful it was to be frozen in place. Though he was clearly still breathing, his breaths were short, his chest rising and falling rapidly beneath his oversized t-shirt. A vein in his neck throbbed as every muscle in his body was tensed. Judging from just how chilled and laid back Sans seemed to be usually, being this tightly wound in the grip of a viper wasn’t something he was used to. 

Deku remembered how Calliope had caught his eye for just a split second back at the start of the obstacle course. His whole body had clenched and his heart had slipped a beat. Initially, he had imagined it to be because she had looked so pretty in the sunlight with the rays dancing on her bronzed skin and iridescent scales. In that second, he had felt such discomfort. He imagined how Bakugo must have felt under the gaze of both Calliope, Sans and his intimidating GasterBlaster skull. Frozen helplessly in place while certain demise hung over you. Calli was right to have stopped the fight when she did. 

“I think he’s learnt his lesson, don’t you?” Papyrus laughed, seemingly unfazed by his sibling’s predicament. 

Calliope groaned quietly. 

“This is why I don’t enjoy using my permanent petrification.” She muttered, taking Sans’ face in her hands and gazing mournfully at him. 

“It’s so unfair...”

It was a peculiar thing to say, Deku thought as he eyed the scene taking place in front of them in a bashful silence. But as he considered her words, he understood their meaning. It was unfair for both parties- the person who had no control nor consent to what was to happen to them next, nor for Calli who could never experience the true intimacies of looking someone in the eye when they spoke to you or when they leaned towards you for a kiss...

He blushed hard at this last thought. He had never considered himself to be a romantic but as he watched Calliope lean towards her mentor and plant a soft kiss against his unmoving lips, he couldn’t help but realise just how cruel her quirk could be for someone who craved real closeness. 

As Calliope held her lips against Sans’ his whole body immediately relaxed. So much so that, as soon as she released him, he toppled backwards and hit the floor with a dull thud. He immediately began snoring. 

“Ah yes, well...” Papyrus frowned as the girls in the class flustered. 

“Sans depends entirely on the energy stored in his body to power his GasterBlasters. It’s why he likes to sleep so much. Though he didn’t fire one, I imagine his battle with you must really have done a number on him. So well done Bakugo.” He stooped down and hoisted his older sibling onto his shoulder, fireman style. Calliope reached up and wiped the last few tears from her snoring mentor’s cheeks. She still looked melancholy. 

“See that, man?” Kirishima grinned, giving Bakugo an amicable shake, “you could technically consider that a win!”

Bakugo sneered. 

“Well, you’ll have your chance to compete against us tomorrow. Although you’ve seen Sans in action, there’s is still much you can learn from both myself and Calliope. Not to mention how the three of us work together as a team.” Papyrus said, shifting his brother’s weight on his shoulder. 

“Take Bakugo to get fixed up and I want you all well fed and rested for tomorrow’s lesson!”


	5. For a Kiss

“Well, I’d say that went well for our first day!” Russ said happily as he and Calliope walked the corridors of the UA d teachers’ quarters. The principal had insisted they stay on campus rather than in a hotel in the city. Sam was still snoring across his younger brother’s shoulder as they made their way back to their accommodation. There were staying in two neighbouring rooms but Calliope followed her mentor into theirs to continue the discussion. 

“The students here are quite something!” Russ went on, slipping the still sleeping Sam onto his bed. “I mean, I knew they were skilled from the sports festival footage, but that Bakugo kid really did surprise me today.” 

Calliope hummed in thought as she pulled off Sam’s shoe, Russ pulled off the other. 

“He doesn’t hold back, that’s for sure.” Calliope commented as she placed his sneakers by the door. When she turned back around, Russ had tucked his brother in and now sat in an armchair by the window. Outside, the sun was setting. The golden glow filled the small room with warmth and Calliope with fatigue. She slumped into the chair opposite Russ. 

“It’s lucky Sam did. I was half expecting him to shred the poor boy.” Russ said, scratching his chin idly. 

“True. I suppose he is finally learning how to be a responsible adult,” Calliope softly joked.

During her time with the brothers, she had soon learned that, despite being the youngest by 2 years, Russ was the more responsible of the two. Sam was a joker, a prankster and shamelessly lazy at times. Part of this was due to his powerful quirk, but the rest was simply down to the fact he cared little for the status quo of hero work. Unlike his younger brother, who thrived off his rising popularity, Sam avoided media attention at all costs and happily handed any attention over to his younger brother. Calliope could relate to this need for privacy. Unlike the Japanese news coverage, the American media were far more brutal and unrelenting in their quest to discover every little thing about the up and coming heroes. 

“Well, I wouldn’t go that far. He looked pretty serious about blasting the poor student into oblivion.” Russ frowned, casting a glance at his snoring sibling. 

“By the way, you did well today, Calli. You should be proud of yourself.” 

Calliope smiled, wishing she could look up at her kind mentor when he praised her in such a way. But instead she kept her eyes fixed on the burning horizon. 

“When will my new visor arrive?” She asked. Her last one had been destroyed in a previous fight with a small-time villain. Though it was part of her hero costume, she liked to wear it when she ventured in public so that she didn’t need to walk with her head down the whole time. Not having it with her here in Japan, on a school campus in a crowded city, was a huge pain. 

“It was dispatched a few days before we set off from America, so it should arrive by the end of the week.” Russ said, a hint of sympathy in his voice. 

“I know it’s frustrating going about your day without it, but try not to let it dampen your spirits.” He reached over and took her chin, turning her face towards him. She instinctively shut her eyes. 

“Don’t let your quirk make you think any less of yourself.” She heard him say. She felt his thumb caress her cheek and she tried not to cry. 

“Oh and...” she felt him release her and she creaked open an eye. He was looking away from her in the direction of his sleeping sibling. 

“When will you stop finding excuses to kiss my brother?” 

She felt heat rush to her cheeks. Russ was laughing now. 

“I-I did what was necessary to stop him from launching his GasterBlaster!” She stuttered. 

The laughter continued, quiet enough to avoid waking the sleeping sibling.

“I’m sure he would have obeyed you if you simply asked him to stop. Was the petrification really necessary?” 

He was teasing her, she knew that. But she couldn’t help but squirm under his mock criticism. Of course she had considered just asking Sam to call of the blast while she kept Bakugo at bay with her eyes, but she had remembered the sight of Sam’s twitching fingers. Had those fingers curled inwards anymore, the beast would have breathed its white-hot breath in a blast so powerful it was likely the teenage boy would have been nothing but the bones he had so valiantly fought against moments before.

Russ must have noticed her inner monologuing because he gripped her shoulder and shook her amicably from her thoughts. 

“I’m just joking with you, Calli!” He laughed. 

“You made the right call and Sam certainly deserved the punishment. Although...” and Calliope felt him lean closer. His voice dropped to a playful whisper when he said “I think he’d take the punishment a hundreds times over for the second that comes after, huh?” 

“Stop it!” She whispered back, trying to hide her sheepish smile. “You sound just like those teenage boys!” 

Russ chuckled and shoved her arm jovially. 

“Ah well. Perhaps it’s why he acted so recklessly. Maybe he wanted you to stop him.” 

Calliope wished she could shoot him a glare. Instead, she cast it into the sunset and growled at the horizon. “That’s ridiculous.” 

“Perhaps. Perhaps not. But let’s hope Mr Aizawa doesn’t find out that one of his students risked getting blasted into next week all for a chance at a kiss.” 

Russ smirked. Calliope grimaced. Sam grunted in his sleep.


	6. One, Two, Three

When Class 1A made their way down to the training grounds the next morning, they were greeted by the American heroes who still had yet to don their hero costumes. Instead, Calliope and Papyrus wore matching black and white jumpsuits. Sans remained in his usual combination of sweatpants and baggy hoody. His eyes looked as tired as ever as he watched the students gather in a semi circle before them. Calliope seemed to carry herself differently today. Though her eyes slanted away from the gaze of others, she stood with her head held high above her shoulders. Deku wondered if her mentors had given her a pep talk.

“Good morning, Class 1A!” Papyrus exclaimed. “I hope you are all well rested.”

Sans yawned openly, making some of the girls laugh. Even Calliope’s lip twitched. 

Papyrus sighed, rolling his eyes skywards before continuing. 

“Today, you will be competing against each other.”

Behind him, towered another intricate obstacle course.

“You will race one another through this new course. The top three people will then have to work together in a fight against myself, Sam and Calli.” 

Bakugo grunted. Deku imagined he was eager to have another chance at battling Sans. 

“Though the aim is straight forward, there is one catch. All three of us will be using our quirks from the side lines to hinder your progression.” 

The whole class muttered apprehensively as Sans and Calliope’s faces split into mischievous smiles. 

“Think carefully about how you will go about reaching the finish line. Will you go it alone and risk having to battle against us three with two people whose quirks aren’t compatible with your own?” 

Deku shot a glance at Bakugo, who had simply destroyed the last obstacle course. Deku was sure they’d have made sure to avoid that happening again somehow. 

“Or will you choose to make allies that will help improve your chances at winning against those who are better suited to this kind of activity?” 

Deku considered his options. His quirk was indeed suited to this sort of thing. There was little benefit from forming an alliance. However, if he did rank in the top three, he would have to face the American trio with the other two students. They all still hadn’t witnessed the trio fight together and were uneducated in how they chose to combine their skills. Although Deku could try and guess who in Class 1A was most likely to come out on top, the fact the trio would be interfering with the race made it anyone’s guess. For example, though Iida could very easily outrun the Skelebros attacks, if Calliope somehow caught his eye...

Come to think of it, it would be very difficult to avoid any oncoming projectiles and shifting structures with the risk of petrification looming over you. Even if Calliope caught your eye for just a second, the speed and precision of Sans’ long range attacks could easily take you out, or Papyrus could shift the obstacle course to loosen your footing...

Deku’s rambling train of thought was cut short as Papyrus ordered them to make their way to the starting line. As the class obeyed, the students chattering to one another about tactics, the Americans positioned themselves at stations along the course.

The class was horrified to find Calliope stood just behind the finish line, her eyes fixed upon them all as she stared down the entire length of the course. 

“Is it even possible to finish this course without looking up?” Sero groaned, joining his class’ collective gaze at anywhere but the finishing line where Calliope now began to pace.

Sans had stationed himself by a large gap that they would most certainly have to jump across somehow. The vision of trying to jump while avoiding his speeding, rapier-like bones sent a chill down Deku’s spine. Papyrus stood on a high platform overlooking everything, most likely so that he had a good vantage point to command the entire course. Deku pictured a puppeteer pulling at strings. 

“Now, on my mark...” he bellowed from above. 

The students got into their starting poses.

“Get set...” 

Bakugo’s hands sparked. 

“Go!” 

A huge blast of fire propelled Bakugo forwards meters at a time so that he soared ahead of everyone else, leaving them in his smoke. Several more blasts rang out, followed by the crunching of bones but, unlike yesterday, Papyrus was ready to repair the damage. No sooner had Bakugo destroyed the large obstacle in front of him, did it immediately repair itself causing him to collide heavily against it. He slid down the wall of bones as Todoroki, Tokoyami, Tsu and Deku whipped past him. Deku couldn’t see what was happening behind him, nor dared look to see how far the finishing line was. Instead, he focused his vision left and right and directly in front of him. He heard a whoosh to his left and witnessed Todoroki create an ice wall a few meters ahead. To block out Calliope perhaps? It shattered soon after as a large bone shot through it. But the delay had given Todoroki enough time to weave in and out of the next set of intricate obstacles without risk of being petrified.

Tokoyami had found an ingenious solution to the problem of Calliope. He had used Dark Shadow to completely conceal him from the waist up, sacrificing the sentient shadow’s vision and mobility in order to protect his own. This however, meant that his only defence against projectiles towards his legs and his ability to launch himself long distances was denied him. A problem that later cost him the long jump that Sans stood sentry to. He had taken him and a few others out mid-jump with ruthless gashes to the arms and legs. Though, as Deku cleared the jump and landed safely, albeit unsteadily on the other side due to his own slashed thigh, he was thankful of Sans precision. He was clearly aiming to injure and not kill. Those bones could easily have ripped through multiple torsos at once.

Todoroki had been the first to complete the course, having only used his ice to succeed. Tsu had been doing well until Calliope had caught her eye in the reflection of Todoroki’s ice and lost momentum during a swing. As she fell, the bone that she had tried to reach with her tongue to save her fall was obliterated by a passing Bakugo. Despite his earlier worries, Sero was actually doing well and was almost at the finishing line. But not before the angry Bakugo, once again covered in slices left there by his journey past Sans, brutally blast past him sending the tape-wielding student headlong into a bony wall.

Bakugo was clearly thirsty for a second chance against the older Skelebro. That left just one place left. Unaware of the tactics and progress of his fellow classmates behind him, Deku focused on his battle for third place with Iida. As predicted, his quirk had allowed him to avoid most of what the Skelebros had thrown at him, though Deku glanced a few scratches across his face as they hurtled neck and neck through the final stretch. Bones broke and tumbled, hurtled and twirled towards them. And beyond all that was Calliope’s unblinking eyes. She could only stare one of them down at a time. It was almost like a game of chicken. Who would look up first? The shifting course and oncoming projectiles meant that occasional they had to risk looking up. And, purely by luck of the draw, as Iida bowed his head to avoid the direct stare of Calliope as she appeared suddenly in his line of vision after he dodged a large, spinning bone, another struck him squarely in the face. The force of the impact shattered his nose, luckily missing his eyes. Part of him wanted to run to his classmate’s aid, but as Kirishima and Mina’s excited yells threatened to catch up to him, Deku took his chance and seized third place. He crossed the finish line with his eyes shut tight and collided heavily against someone. On instinct he opened them and found himself tangled in long, matcha-coloured hair. 

“Calliope!” He cried in embarrassment as he scrambled to his feet. He had knocked her onto her side. It seemed the other students had taken this opportunity to hurtle towards the now unguarded finish line as more and more of his classmates joined him. 

“I’m so sorry!” He squeaked as she slowly sat up. She clutched her ribs and Deku feared the impact may have broken them. 

“You okay, Calli?” came Sans’ low voice from behind him. 

“These kids sure do like trying to break our bones, huh?” 

And when she laughed at his lame joke, Deku knew at once that her ribs were fine. 

“I’m sorry,” he said again as Sans appeared at his side, “I didn’t see her!” 

Sans chuckled as he helped Calliope to her feet. 

“Heh. That’s often the case, kid.” 

“That’s it! The race is over!” Bellowed Papyrus’ voice from above them. 

“Congratulations to everyone who crossed the finish line and my condolences to those that didn’t.”

The bone-made platform he stood on began to lower, the base of the bones retracting back into the dust and dirt they came from. In a matter of seconds, he and the obstacle course had returned fully to the ground.

“And an even bigger congratulations to the first three!” He grinned as he approached them. “Todoroki, Bakugo, Midoriya! Your prize is that you’ll all have the honour of trying to beat the three of us in a fight.” 

Those students who were nursing injuries scoffed. 

“To be honest, I’m kinda glad Bakugo took me out...” Sero began, “I don’t think I’d want to be going against the three of them so soon.” 

“Not to worry.” Papyrus exclaimed, eyeing the three winners happily, “we will be taking a break to allow your school nurse to see to everyone’s injuries. They all seem quite minor, except for poor Iida’s broken nose...” he turned to the bloody faced student in question “sorry about that by the way.” 

Iida saluted awkwardly. “No matter! I misjudged the timing of my actions and paid the consequence for it!”

“Well, get cleaned up and you can all join us back here in say, an hour tops? That also gives the boys some time talk battle tactics.” Papyrus ended, turning his honey-coloured irises on the three winners.


	7. Snake Eyes

As he stood at the opposite end of the arena 45 minutes later with Bakugo and Todoroki, Deku racked his brains for a strategy as the rest of the class gathered on the sidelines. 

He and his two teammates were three of the strongest fighters in the class, however their quirks weren’t all that compatible. 

“We have way more combined fire power than they do,” Bakugo stated, flexing his shoulders. Recovery Girl had healed most of the slashes from his body. 

“True,” mused Deku, stroking his chin in consideration. “But Sans’ ranged attacks are way more precise than ours and, due to the terrain, he and his brother have a seemingly unlimited source of particles to create his attacks.” 

“Calliope mentioned yesterday that my fire wouldn’t be enough the destroy any of their bones attacks.” Todoroki recounted. “And Papyrus’ larger bones easily smash through my ice.” 

“Then I’ll use my explosions!” Bakugo snarled, raising a fist. “You saw how easily they destroyed everything yesterday.” 

Todoroki blinked, his face as neutral as ever as he stated, “yet you still lost.” 

This caused Bakugo to give an angry grunt. 

“It’s true that combined, we have a better offence.” Deku commented, cutting across Bakugo’s insults, “Papyrus mentioned yesterday that his brother favours long ranged attacks. If we could somehow get close enough to him, we could maybe take him out in close combat.” 

“Do you reckon the three of them will play on the defensive then?” Todoroki asked, ignoring Bakugo’s continued flow of curses. 

“Perhaps.” He chanced a glance towards the American team and immediately felt his body seize up. Calliope was looking straight at him from between the two brothers who stood like sentries at either side of her. She no longer cowered behind her hair like she had done yesterday. Instead, she had drawn herself to her full height, slightly taller than Sans yet shorter than Papyrus, and stood with her shoulders back and her hair swept from her face. She and her team teammates were now all wearing their hero attire, though Sans’ clothes barely differed from what he wore yesterday. All that seemed to have changed was his jacket, which he had switched for an oversized blue coat with a fur lined hood, and his sneakers, whose laces were now properly tied. Papyrus looked ridiculously cool in armour constructed of bone. His skull-like helmet concealed half of his grinning face while he held a large, bone-like weapon against his shoulder. He wore a blazing red scarf about his neck. 

Calliope was still staring at him with her acid-yellow eyes. Her costume was lacking her trademark viper-head visor that she had mentioned earlier on had been destroyed in her last battle back in the USA, but the rest of her outfit remained the same. It was the same colour as the patches of scales that decorated her body and was made to resemble them too. The slight iridescence to her suit was mesmerising, yet not startling enough to cause your eyes to turn away from its gleam. In fact, the way her entire body glittered almost dared you to look at her. She oozed temptation. Everything about her costume dared you to look her way. 

Deku felt his body grow cold and his eyes begin to sting from lack of blinking. It was only when they had begun to water that Todoroki noticed what was happening and took action. He stepped into her line of vision, his back turned towards her, breaking her hold on Deku. He gasped as his body returned to him and rubbed at his sore eyes. 

“Calliope.” He muttered, “they’ll use her to immobilise us and throw off our aim. With her ability to petrify us, the brothers could easily land a hit on us. And if she gets anywhere near us...” he thought back to how she had managed to slip by unseen past the whole class and across the training ground to an unsuspecting Sans. How she had snaked her hands around him and drew herself towards his ear...

He felt his cheeks grow hot. 

“Yes. And now she knows all our names.” Todoroki mused, still blocking her gaze from the rest of his teammates. 

“Urgh. The snake can only focus on one of us at a time!” Growled Bakugo, who still seemed to be seething from Todoroki’s reminder of yesterday’s defeat. 

“So long as we just ignore her and keep blasting our way towards them. They’ll be on the back-foot right from the get go.”

Although he didn’t want to admit it, it seemed that Bakugo’s violent strategy was their best option. And that's when his inner monologuing began;

He is right. Sans will keep his distance and launch an attack from afar. Even if Calliope shadows him, Kacchan and Todoroki’s attacks are wide spread enough to not have to rely too much on precision. They can fire attacks towards them without really having to look straight at them. That means I could go after Papyrus who will surely be their main defence. He mentioned he is better at close range battles, but I doubt he will risk charging towards the three of us and breaking ranks with his team. They are known for working as a single unit so surely they’ll remain in formation the whole time. Perhaps they’ll try to wear us down like Sans did to Kacchan yesterday, until we reach our quirk limits since that isn’t a problem for them. They’ll try to weaken us until they can immobilise us. Then, Sans could use his ultimate move to take us all out in one hit...

“Are you boys ready?” Called Papyrus from the other side of the terrain. He looked formidable in his bone-armour, the chest-plate and shoulder-guards making him look even broader than usual. 

Deku heaved a sigh of determination as he glanced Todoroki. His teammate nodded. Bakugo called out with his eyes blazing, “hell yeah!” 

“Very well.”

Calliope felt Sans’ elbow gently knock hers. She knew what he was asking her without him even having to speak the words. They had worked professionally together for just over 6 months now and she had trained with them for weeks before that. Their success all came down to their ability to predict each other’s thoughts and actions, to read each other’s movements. She gave a small nod. She saw his lip curl into a smile from the corner of her eye. 

“Then...” Papyrus swung his sword, “come and get us!” 

Faster than the UA students could react, the terrain underfoot shook violently and an enormous structure of bones burst forth. It shot towards the sky, towering walls splitting up the three UA students on the other side of the terrain. 

“Whoa! A maze!” Yelled Kaminari from the sidelines when the ground stopped shaking. 

Calliope and Sans had ridden one of the walls up and were now rushing along the structure from above. 

“Eyes open, Calli,” Sans grinned. 

It seemed that the three UA boys, despite two days of witnessing Papyrus’ ability to create large structures in an instant, hadn’t anticipated the sudden shift in terrain. A roar of frustration rang out to their right. Sans and Calliope anticipated Bakugo’s blast moments before it obliterated an entire section of the maze. In unison, they leapt away as they heard a frustrated Todoroki call out. 

“Bakugo! Don’t fire off your quirk blindly! You almost took me-“

But he was cut short. Following the sound of his voice Sans located him in seconds and, with a casual swipe of his hand, launched a barrage of thin bones towards him. They pinned him to the wall behind him by his clothes, though Calli saw blood trickle from his biceps from where they had nicked him. The attack had taken Todoroki by surprise but he reacted quickly enough to burn himself free from the left side. Now that he was shirtless on one side, Calliope could see just how many of the bones had actually cut into him. Alas, as he tried to tug himself free from the rest of the binds, Calliope had already leapt down and reached for him. Thanks to Bakugo’s brash action, the duel-quirked student hadn’t even seen it coming. She whispered his name before he could even turn to see her land in front of him. Once paralysed, Sans turned the bones that pinned Todoroki to the wall back to dust. Due to his petrification, he remained on his feet, his lips pressed into a thin line and his eyes wide with shock. He was clearly dumbfounded to have been taken out so quickly, especially considering he had come first in the previous activity. 

From the sidelines, the students had began their own commentary.

“Did you see that explosion?” 

“Yeah! Must’ve been Bakugo trying to take down the maze.”

“Hey Midoriya, are you guys separated?” 

“Where’s Todoroki?”

“Yeah, what gives?”

“That’s one down,” Sans said nonchalantly before turning to leave. Calliope apologised quietly to Todoroki as she kindly shut his eyes for him. She didn’t want to risk him getting injured by any flying debris. Just as well too, as another blast rang out, followed by a flash of green from above. Midoriya soared high above them, pulsing with energy. He had seen what had happened to Todoroki, the shock registered on his face as he landed on the wall just above them. 

“Kacchan! They got Todoroki!” He called. 

“What? No way! Already?” Cried Mina from the onlooking crowd. 

Wisely, Midoriya kept his eyes from Calliope as she stared up at him. Instead, he aimed an attack at Sans, who dodged and countered with a shower of sharp bone shards. A blast rang out as another shadow flitted across them. Bakugo had leapt onto a maze wall a few meters from them. Calliope heard him curse. Another swipe of a hand and a barrage of bones pushed him back even further. The sound of heavy footsteps approaching quickly caused Midoriya to turn. He narrowly dodged Papyrus sword as it sliced through the air just where he had been only milliseconds before. Calliope heard her name called and took off after Sans, who had used his brother’s appearance to turn and pursue Bakugo. Papyrus would hold off Midoriya in the meantime. 

As she scaled the wall Sans now ran along, she heard Midoriya land a powerful hit against Papyrus bone-armour. It crunched under impact but she knew it would repair itself immediately in a swirl of dust. The fight between them would be a battle of strength and endurance. Sans, Bakugo and herself would rely on strategy. 

Bakugo grinned wildly as he saw them approaching. 

“So you finally decide to come at me instead of throwing your little needles, huh?!” He bellowed at Sans, his body sparking like the end of a severed power line. Calliope saw him register her presence even though he avoided her eye. 

“And you decided to bring the Snake with you as collateral?” He laughed and Calliope gritted her teeth. 

“Now, now. That’s no way to talk to your superiors.” Sans replied. Though his lips smirked, his left eyed blazed gas-fire blue as he launched a quick succession of attacks. Bakugo blasted the bones back to dust. 

Calliope reached her mentor as he and the explosive UA student faced off. Due to being slightly taller than Sans, her eyes were able to glare at Bakugo from over the top of his snowy white head. 

Bakugo had averted his eyes before she could hold him, though she could tell it pained him to do so. She knew from how he had fought with Sans the other day that he liked to stare down his opponents. Though, it was possible for the UA student to look Sans in the eye while avoiding Calliope’s, he was smart enough to register the risk. All it would take was an accidental glance or a shift in formation between herself and her mentor... 

She smirked at the sight of his internal struggle. It clearly hurt his pride to lower his eyes from his opponent. Most of the time, her quirk made her feel isolated and disconnected. It stripped her of certain intimacies that she longingly craved growing up in the orphanage. But, as she stood with her mentor as they both stared down an adversary like they had done so many times before, her quirk made her feel powerful. 

But Bakugo didn’t let his pride hinder his fighting spirit. Sneering, he aimed a series of blasts in their direction. Perhaps he hoped to separate them the same way they had done with him and Midoriya. But their instincts were seamlessly synced and they both leapt as one, jumping left and landing on the adjacent wall. Through the blast smoke, Sans sent a slicing formation of bones. A loud grunt of pain informed them that at least one of them had found its target. It was a reckless move from Sans, his vision had been impaired. Though he was usually extremely precise with his attacks, at least in training such as this, there was no way he could have seen Bakugo properly though the smoke. 

“Don’t tell me he’s gotten under your skin?” Calliope exclaimed. Prodding her mentor in his ribs. Was he wound up by what Bakugo had called her earlier? 

When the smoke cleared, Calliope saw that Bakugo had one of Sans’ bones impaled in his thigh. 

“Whoops,” Sans huffed through a lazy grin. “Why don’t you take it from here then?” 

Calliope scoffed but knew what she had to do next. She slipped into the shadowy maze below as Bakugo, angry from the hit yet whose eyes still remained averted from them, fired his biggest blast yet and then, as she hit the ground, launched a stun grenade that she knew was intended to impair her. A shadow graced across her as Bakugo had launched himself towards the sphere of bones that Sans had created to protect him from the worst of the large blast. Luckily, he hadn’t spotted her as she concealed herself in the shadow of the towering maze walls, or what was left of them at least. He landed on top of the sphere that contained her mentor. Calliope knew that it would have taken a lot of energy to have maintained the structure of that sphere. Bakugo’s blasts easily destroyed Sans’ bones attacks so, to keep such a powerful blast at bay, he must have had to continuously make them for the entire duration of the blaze. She watched from below as Bakugo began to punch his way into the sphere. 

“Come out here and face me, You bastard!” He roared. 

Calliope wondered if he’d burst through it to find Sans fast asleep within, exhausted from the defensive move. A move he had done to ensure she could make her own. It was now or never. He hadn’t seen her slip away. Judging from the way he kept his eyes shut as he pounded into the sphere, he must have expected to find her inside too. She began to quietly scale the wall. Bakugo’s leg was bleeding quite badly, the bone still embedded in his thigh. Perhaps loss of blood or rage was making him act so rashly. If Sans hadn’t passed out inside his protective sphere, he could easily launch an attack from within. But Calliope suspected he was simply waiting it out to keep Bakugo distracted.

“Give. It. Up!” He roared between punches. The bones were beginning to stall in their regeneration, meaning Sans’ energy was draining fast. The UA student would soon break through to discover she wasn’t there. She kept her movements slow and cautious. She had to remain stealthy, unseen. If Bakugo were to launch a direct attack on her, she would have no defence. 

As she reached the top of the wall, just feet from behind Bakugo, he launched an explosive punch and blasted away the remains of the sphere. Calliope tried not to cry out as she saw her fatigued mentor appear beneath a feral looking Bakugo. 

“There you are...” he sneered, he had grabbed a handful of Sans blackened t-shirt and lifted him off the ground. In her entire time working with the Skelebros, never once had she seen the older sibling get hit. It was kinda his thing. 

“I’ve got you now,” Bakugo growled into Sans’ dirtied and bloodied face. Her mentor’s lip was split but it twisted into a weak smile nonetheless. Had Bakugo forgotten all about her? 

His eyes widened with realisation. 

“Wait. Where’s the snake?”

Calliope cursed. She had missed her chance. She had let herself be distracted by her mentor’s weakened image. She had to move fast. 

Still clutching Sans t-shirt, Bakugo turned quickly, his hands sparking. Calliope dove beneath his arm as it swung round and fired a flash grenade in her direction. Her lithe body served her well as she hit the ground at his feet then, her supple spine and strong limbs manoeuvring her through his parted legs. She smelt the sweet smell of blood as she past his thigh, the smell of sweat as she climbed his torso and the smell of dirt as she reached his ear. 

“Bakugo...” 

His body immediately went tense beneath her fingers. 

“Better luck next time.” She said sympathetically, reaching around to gently close his eyes. 

“Maybe third time’s a charm.” 

She didn’t bother stepping out to see his expression. She would have to face it once the battle was over anyway. The thought made her stomach drop. That’s two boys she’s have to set free. She disregarded the thought as she focused her attention on uncurling Bakugo’s fingers from her mentor’s shirt. 

Sans fell backwards onto the wall with a tired grunt. 

“Nice moves,” he complimented weakly, wiping his bloodied lips on his sleeve. “But you still got work to do.” 

Calliope nodded, unable to bring herself to comment on his weakened image. He pulled his beanie hat down over his eyes as he laid back onto the wall. She hesitated, expecting him to say something else. However, he simply heaved an exhausted sigh. Shaking her head, she took off towards where Papyrus was still fighting Midoriya. 

They were easy to locate. Most of the maze had now been destroyed and the sound of blasts and crunching bones could easily be heard now Bakugo’s explosions no longer rang in her ears. Midoriya looked tired. Then again, so did Papyrus, who was struggling to repair his armour after Midoriya’s well timed hits. Soon enough, the young UA student would be make contact with Papyrus’ lean but tiring body. The boy sure hit hard. And he was fast! Though, his efforts on the obstacle courses had proved that. 

Papyrus had been using a combination of bone-defences and hand to hand combat tactics against him. She drew closer, making sure to approach from behind hoping that Papyrus spotted her before Midoriya did. A wide grin from beneath his cracked helmet proved that he had. Acting oblivious, he took another swipe at his opponent with his bone-made sword. As Midoriya evaded, Papyrus erected a single, large bone in the space between the unaware UA boy and Calliope. She leapt and grabbed for the bone. She swung, as swift and as elegant as a pole dancer. She span once...twice...

“Wow!” She heard a voice call as she twirled and manoeuvred her body into Midoriya’s trajectory. 

“She’s totally jumping his bones!” 

It was that creepy kid, Mineta. She ignored the sleazy pun that surely would have made Sans laugh and focused her attention on her timing. 

Midoriya had also heard the comment and Calliope cursed at the fact her presence had been alerted once again. Not that it mattered, it was too late. Her legs had already wrapped around him, immobilising his arms and stalling his trajectory. She squeezed his arms to his sides, using her core and upper body strength to hold her up on the bone. Papyrus laughed in triumph and rushed forwards, landing an uppercut on that knocked the startled student’s bewildered head backwards. It fell hard into Calliope’s shoulder. She kinda felt bad but it was time to finish this.

“Sorry, Midoriya...” she whispered, and unwrapped her slender limbs from him. 

She had petrified him in a peculiar position. His face pointed skyward in a pained expression. He had just been struck in the chin after all. His arms were locked against his sides and his legs were bent beneath him awkwardly. He looked as if he had just received some devastating news. Then again, he kinda had. They’d just lose the fight. 

“No way! I thought Midoriya had him! She came out of nowhere!” Cried Sero as Papyrus removed his helmet and returned the remainder of the maze to dust. This revealed Todoroki’s petrified body and lowered Sans and Bakugo’s to the ground. 

“So they did take Todoroki out right at the beginning!” Mina exclaimed.

“Man, I wish I’d have seen it!” Kirishima grumbled. 

“But at least we got to see Bakugo get taken down!” Kaminari gushed. He turned to Calliope, “You were awesome!” 

“Wait.” Tsu began, her finger placed lightly on her chin. “You used your permanent petrification on them all so that means...” 

Expressions shifted gradually across the many faces of Class 1A as realisation dawned on them. 

“No way!” Mina squealed, her dark eyes jumping from one petrified boy to the next. 

Calliope sighed. 

“Oh dude, look!” laughed Kaminari. 

Calliope turned to look in the direction he was pointing in and immediately face palmed. Walking towards them was a disheveled looking Sans, tailed by two of his GasterBlasters. In their gaping mouths were the petrified bodies of the two UA boys. 

“Was that really necessary, Sans?” Papyrus grumbled, “I’m sure Calliope could have just gone over to them.” 

Sans was grinning, dried blood on his chin and hands in his pockets. His laces had come untied. 

“I thought the rest of the class should witness a bit of tenderness after all that violence.”

The boys in the class were laughing, the girls looked perplexed. 

Calliope would have chastised the cheek of her mentor had she not been so happy to see him on his feet. And after summoning two GasterBlaster’s nonetheless. She had forgotten he could use them as tools, not just weapons. And it was only when he fired them that his energy depleted the most. 

The beastly skulls, despite their intimidating appearance, placed the two boys gently back on to their feet then disappeared as dust on the breeze. The three boys now stood in funny little line, Todoroki, Midoriya and Bakugo. Each one bore a different expression. The first looked as if he were simply resting. His eyes were still closed, his lips slightly parted. Sans chuckled as he tipped Midoriya’s head forwards from behind so that his wide eyes were no longer staring into the afternoon sun. Calliope sighed. The poor boy looked rough. His teeth were gritted and his pupils were dilated. But nothing could top the expression on Bakugo’s face. Even though his eyes were closed, his face housed the expression of an enraged bull. 

“Oh ho ho, man!” Sero exclaimed gleefully. “I bet they’re feeling so dumb right now!”

“What I’d give to be in their shoes,” whimpered Mineta. He was part drooling, part crying.

“I’m glad you find my tragic quirk so amusing,” murmured Calliope as she gazed somewhat sadly at her work. 

“Ah, c’mon Calli. You’ll probably be these boys’ first kiss so be gentle now.” Sans teased. This elicited some sniggers from the boys in the glass and some disappointed sighs from the girls. Some faces betrayed their slight envy for Calliope. The older woman wanted to explain that it was nothing to be jealous about. Kisses were only pleasurable when both parties consented. And teenage boys weren’t her type. 

“Yes, nothing says romance like petrification and being kissed by an older lady in front an audience.” Calliope retorted with a roll of her eyes. 

“Depends what you’re into.” Sans joked with a shrug. 

“Come now, everyone!” Papyrus declared in his most authoritative voice. 

“Let’s not draw this out! These boys all need medical attention.” He turned to Calliope who’s eyes remained fixed on the boys’ frozen faces. She hadn’t shut Midoriya’s eyes and they were beginning to water. She was glad she couldn’t hear what they were all thinking. Bakugo looked like he was internally screaming. 

“Calli, if you please. Return these boys to their senses.” 

With a deep sigh, she made her way over to Todoroki, who was still semi topless. Gently, she took him by the chin and closed his partly open mouth before pushing hers against it. He immediately inhaled a long breath and relaxed his body as she pulled away. He seemed to have handled his lengthy time under petrification well and judging from what she knew of his personality so far, would most likely handle the de-petrification the best too. Only a faint tinge of pink crept beneath his skin as he reopened his eyes. 

“Aww man,” she heard Mina moan quietly. “I can’t believe she got to kiss Todoroki.”

“Yeah, I’m kinda jealous.” She heard Hagakure respond. 

Calliope internally sighed. Kissing teenage boys in front of their admirers definitely wasn’t her thing. 

Moving on, she faced Midoriya and frowned at his pained expression. It was never a pleasant experience having to kiss people who’s faces looked like this when you drew near. She tried to make the experience less awkward for the both of them by using one hand to cover his eyes and the other to form his mouth into something more kissable- he was gritting his teeth. She grumbled as she tried to squeeze his lips together. She knew how silly she was making him look and hoped she blocked the worst of it from the eager eyes of his classmates. But most of boys had crept closer and were snorting in glee at poor Midoriya’s ridiculous expression. With his lips puckered as best as she could make them, she leaned in fast and freed him from his embarrassing predicament. She faintly heard Ochako draw in a breath when she pulled her lips from his. Another crush, she expected.

Midoriya gasped loudly and let out the yell that had caught in his throat from before Calliope had petrified him, when Papyrus had uppercut him. It startled Calliope, who stumbled backwards into a chuckling Sans. 

“Really, Sans.” She hissed, “stop encouraging them!” The boys in the class were now in hysterics. The laughter was quite contagious though, and she fought against her quivering lips. Even Papyrus was smirking behind his hand. 

Bakugo was the last to go. Even though he was petrified, he seemed to quake with rage. She imagined his eyes blazing furiously behind his closed lids. A vein in his neck throbbed and his entire body radiated a cocktail of anger, frustration and humiliation. She was not looking forward to placing her lips anywhere near his. This was not how kisses were meant to happen. 

“Damn, he sure looks pissed,” Kaminari laughed. 

“No kidding,” Kirishima followed. 

“Say, Calliope?” Tsu piped up. “What would happen if you just left him?” 

Calliope scoffed happily. “Is that what you guys would prefer?” 

“To be honest, it might do us all a favour,” Jirou said in a tone that meant she was part serious. 

“Well, there’s a small chance he could break out of it. But that might not be for hours, weeks or even months.” 

Papyrus hummed in agreement. “Calliope has caught a few villains back home in America using her permanent petrification power. Whilst in captivity, some came around on their own after 6 or seven hours. Others were kept alive in jail with minimal food and water before waking up months later.” 

The students pondered this amongst themselves. 

“Now let’s finish up here so the poor boy can get to the school nurse.” 

Papyrus jerked his head at Calliope who grumbled. “Fine.”

She stepped towards him and reached out with one hand. Tentatively, as if he were a poisonous plant, she gripped his cheeks and lightly squeezed. His lips puckered comically as she did so and she felt his face heat up beneath her fingertips. 

“Now, if you try anything stupid once I set you free, you’ll have hell to pay.” She whispered onto his lips, hoping that only he could hear. Then, with a shallow sigh, she closed the gap between them. Unlike the two previous boys, Bakugo did not immediately relax. Instead, he seemed to tense up even more. Most likely in an attempt to restrain his burning anger. 

Kaminari spluttered a laugh. 

“Bakugo, dude! Do you realise you’ve pretty much kissed two guys?”

Papyrus and Calliope both breathed a sigh of exasperation as Bakugo let out a deafening roar. 

“By your two rivals too!” Sero added with tears in his eyes. 

“Shut up, you moron!” Bakugo bellowed. If it wasn’t for his injured leg, he would surely have made to wrap his hands around someone’s throat. 

“Chill, man! You were totally awesome out there!” Kirishima declared, once again helping his friend walk as the class began to head back. 

“Seriously? He lost two days in a row!” Sero teased. 

Calliope shook her head as she and her two mentors tailed the group back to the main building. 

“Recovery Girl won’t be too happy about having to heal the students again so soon.” Papyrus noted, worry in his voice. 

“Don’t worry about it, bro.” Sans said easily, his finger absentmindedly playing with his cut lip. 

“This school has an even bigger reputation for going hard on their students that Juggernaut.” His lip began to bleed again. 

“I’d say we’ve gone pretty easy on them.” 

Calliope cast him a sideways glance to see him swipe his tongue along his wound. She wondered how he felt about allowing himself to get hit in order for them to carry out their strategy. But it was Papyrus who mentioned the matter first. 

“I suppose. By the way, you’ve handled Bakugo’s explosive temper very well these past two days, brother. I’m impressed.” 

Sans shrugged off the compliment. 

“Your control over your quirk is pretty astounding, Sans. Both of you, in fact.” Calliope said in a small voice. She wished the older sibling would leave his lip alone. 

“Thank you, Calli.” Papyrus smiled, his hand finding her shoulder. 

“But you were wonderful. If it wasn’t for you’re abilities, we wouldn’t have been able to immobilise those students without causing them serious injury.”

Calliope gave a small smile as he squeezed her shoulder. 

“You’ve come a long way since the timid girl who began training with us all those months ago.” 

“No doubt.” Sans added. 

And a rush of warmth flooded her body. 


	8. Stási

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If anyone is interested in seeing artwork of Sam, Calli and Russ, head over to my sister's Instagram; Kimberly.S.L

The afternoons events certainly caused a stir among the Class of 1A as the headed back to the dorms. The boys’ teasing had followed the three petrification victims all the way back to the courtyard. 

“I still can’t believe she kissed you, dude!” Kaminari groaned in envy and disbelief later on that evening. 

“Will you shut up already?” snarled Bakugo, his eye twitching. He had just settled into the couch when his dorm mates had immediately accosted him. He partly wished he had chosen to take Recovery Girl’s advice and spend the night in the infirmary.

She had guffawed in disbelief at his new injury when Kirishima had helped take him there. 

“You again?” She’d exclaimed, her eyes dropping to his wounded thigh. 

She had healed the injury relatively quickly stating that the bone-projectile hadn’t penetrated the flesh that deep. Bakugo had suspected Sans really had been holding back all this time and the thought made his blood boil. Not only had he lost twice in a row to these Americans, he had done so without them even using all of their true power. Except perhaps the snake. Then again, she had humiliated him just as much, if not more than Sans had. He remembered hearing the laughter from his classmates and the feel of her fingers on his face. Her breath had tasted strange- both sweet and sour. Perhaps it was to do with her quirk. Everything about the snake was acid-like, from the slight burn of her fingertips, to the sting of her stare. He didn’t see the appeal. 

“Hey, Todoroki,” Sero began. 

The boy in question raised his two-tone eyes from his book. 

“How did you get taken out so quickly? We didn’t even see it happen!” 

“Yeah, one minute the maze shot out of the ground, the next Midoriya was telling Bakugo they’d got you!” Added Mina. 

Todoroki gave a shallow sigh. 

“I was distracted by Bakugo’s explosion. They caught me off guard.” He said simply. 

Bakugo scoffed loudly. 

“Don’t go blaming me for your failure, Icy Hot!” He spat, his hand balled into a fist against his bandaged thigh. 

Todoroki chose not to respond and returned to his book in silence. 

“And Deku...” Ochako began cheerily, “you really held your own against Papyrus! You were amazing!”

Deku’s face didn’t look convinced. 

“Thanks, I guess. But honestly, I could tell he was holding back. I think he must’ve been trying to keep me preoccupied to give Calliope enough time to get to me. She is still their apprentice after all.”

“Oh...” Ochako pondered. “Do you think that they used the fight to train Calliope too?” 

Deku nodded. “I know that Sans and Papyrus are super strong. They could easily have injured us to the point of defeat. I think they wanted to give Calliope the opportunity to use her quirk on us so that they didn’t need to hurt us too much.” 

Deku’s words only reaffirmed what Bakugo had been thinking earlier, which didn’t improve his mood. His jaw worked angrily. 

“All the better for you three!” Mineta blurted. “You didn’t get your butts whipped into a coma and you got to kiss a hot babe!”

Kaminari nodded. “If I’d have known that was going to be their strategy, I’d totally have put more effort in trying to win the obstacle course!” 

“Will you idiots just shut up!” Bakugo burst out. He pushed to his feet. “I’m sick of hearing you.” And he stalked off in the direction of his room. 

“I’d like to avoid having to kiss anymore underage boys, if that’s okay?” Mumbled Calliope into her tea cup as she sat in her mentors’ room. 

Russ chuckled as he poured himself some tea. 

“I’m sorry, Calli. We know how much you hate having to use that part of your quirk.” He said sympathetically as he took a sip. “But we don’t much like injuring teenagers to the point of incapacitation. It was the best strategy for the given situation.” 

Calliope sighed as she nodded her head. “I know.” 

“Anyway...” he began, setting his cup back down, “look what arrived today!” 

He reached behind his chair and tossed her a parcel. 

She knew what it was before she’d even torn off the paper and her heart leapt happily at the sight of what fell into her lap. 

“Just like new!” He smiled as he watched her turn her custom-made visor in her hands. 

It was shaped like the head of a viper, befit with scales in shades that matched those that dappled her skin in places. It was lightweight and the perfect fit as she slipped it onto her head. It covered just her eyes, leaving the bottom of her nose and lips exposed. And the best part? She could finally look at her mentors’ faces directly as they both beamed at her. 

“There’s our girl...” Sam cooed affectionately as he walked to stand beside his brother’s chair. His cool gaze flitted between Calliope’s concealed eyes and smiling lips. 

It had taken her a while to come to terms with the fact that she’d never be able to share loving gazes or intimate stares with anyone without the use of her visor. But, as she looked from one brother to the next, without them seizing up, she couldn’t help but feel elated. This was as good as it was going to get for her, and in that moment, she was okay with that. 

“You should probably make sure it functions okay, though.” Russ suggested. 

Calliope nodded but was reluctant to ruin the moment. 

“I’ll volunteer since Sam had his dose yesterday.” 

She nodded again. “Just for a second. I promise.” She said softly. 

“Ready?” She asked. And when Russ gave a curt nod, she said the activation word. 

“Stási.” And just like that, the visor obeyed letting Calliope’s vision pierce through and cause the younger mentor’s shoulders to tense. 

“Eleftheró.” And he was released from her sight.

“Very good!” Russ breathed, trying to hide his discomfort. He reached for his cup of tea and drank deeply. 

Sam chuckled. “C’mon, Calli. Let’s go grab something to eat.” He made sure to look straight at her when he reached out his hand. How she’d missed the way he looked at her. Russ, however, furrowed his brow.

“We should be planning our individual lessons for tomorrow! We’ll be training three groups of students separately, remember?” 

Sam rolled his eyes and took Calli’s hand when she went to retract it at Russ’ words. 

“We’ll do it over dinner. Right, Calli?” And he gently pulled her to her feet. “Tacos and tequila sound good?” She laughed quietly as Russ clicked his tongue.

“We’re in Japan now, dear brother. I doubt you’ll find tacos here. And absolute no drinking! We are working tomorrow!” 

Sam shrugged as he lead Calliope to the door. 

“Ramen and Saké it is then...” he said, loud enough for his brother to hear as he closed the door behind them. 

Together they laughed as they heard the younger brother bellow from within the room. 

“I said no drinking!” 

They’d chosen not to go to a restaurant in the end. Calliope felt a little self conscious about eating in public in her visor. Instead, they had grabbed some food to go and now sat in a comfortable silence on the cool stone of a fountain. The air was light and the sound of the water at their backs was relaxing. It was a quiet night in the city and Calliope was thankful for the peace. 

“Two days of explosions and screaming teenagers sure does take it’s toll on you,” Calliope sighed, setting down her now empty bento box. 

Sam grunted a laugh. “Well, you’ll be tutoring the kids in stealth and silent take-down techniques tomorrow so it should be a peaceful day for you.” 

When they were alone like this, he always made sure to sit close enough to her so that either their arms or legs touched. It was a habit that had appeared gradually over the past few months. 

The first time his leg had pressed up against hers was by accident. He had laughed a little bashfully and scooted away, the notes he had leaned in to show her show her still in his hand. Russ had shaken his head from the other side of the room, a small smile dashing his lips. For a time, Sam had made sure to act a little more cautiously around his apprentice after that. 

Until one day, when he had gifted Calliope her first visor. She had been so elated, she had thrown her arms around him and whispered her thanks. Unfortunately, she had spoken his name just after and he had tensed up immediately in her arms, the effects of her petrification quirk consuming him. Realisation and embarrassment had coursed through her as she had tried to wiggle free from his arms. But they had stiffened around her, trapping her body to his. For a while, she had just stood there, wearing her new visor in her mentor’s petrified embrace. She knew what she had to do to release him and figured she should do it before Russ came back from training and found them like this. She had slowly removed her visor with one hand and taken Sam’s face in the other. When she had pushed her lips against his, she had lingered longer than necessary. His body had immediately relaxed and it was only when she felt his mouth begin to move against hers that she’d pulled back in shock. 

They’d both apologised in unison. Calliope had pulled her visor back on in the hopes that it hid the colour that had risen in her cheeks. Russ had pretended he hadn’t seen, stalling before he had entered the room. It was only weeks later that he began to tease Calliope about what he had witnessed. 

Since that incident, Calliope and her older mentor’s relationship had shifted. They found more and more excuses to go off alone, more and more excuses to grace one another’s hands, to sit together closely...

“Do you know who’ll be in your group?” She asked him after he’d taken a swig of his iced-tea. 

Sam sighed as he screwed the cap back on the bottle. 

“Well, I know young Bakugo will be joining me.” 

Calliope grinned. “Oh boy...”

Sam nodded slowly, that lazy grin she loved so much spreading across his features. 

“Yup. Gonna be another hell of a day.”

Calliope pursed her lips playfully. 

“You could say, it’ll be a blast...”

Honestly, she couldn’t understand her mentor’s love for lame puns. But when he laughed that low, easy laugh, she didn’t dwell on the thought for long. 

“Heh. I’ve clearly been a terrible influence on you.” He teased, and tapped once on her visor. 

She swatted at his hand. And when he followed that with a kiss on the front of her visor instead, she resisted the urge to send them both crashing into the fountain.


	9. GasterBlaster Disaster

After informing Class 1A which groups they’d be in, the three tutors lead their assigned students to the different locations they’d be training in.

Calliope had the smallest group consisting of only 4 students- Jirou, Hagakure, Shouji and Kouda. She was to be leading them in a stealth based activity. The idea was simple. The four students had to work together to traverse an enemy patrolled area in Ground Gamma, befit with security cameras and spotlights, to secure a flag located in a specific area. That area would be lastly guarded by Calliope, who’s hero costume was now complete with her visor. She had felt a warm glow when some of the students had complimented it earlier in the day. 

Sans and Papyrus both had groups of 8. 

Papyrus had taken his group to the gymnasium where he would be teaching Mina, Kirishima, Ojiro, Midoriya, Iida, Ochako, Yaoyorozu and Satou different forms of hand to hand combat. From capoeira to taekwondo, the ever enthusiastic member of the Skelebros was ready to help each student find their preferred fighting style. Then, they would pair up and spar whilst defending certain markers on their body. The pink cheeked Ochako had asked Papyrus who had taught him how to fight. 

“Why, none other than the great Undyne the Undying!” He declared proudly. But only Midoriya recognised the name. 

Sans had escorted his group to Ground Beta. He had already looked worn out as he lead Bakugo, Kaminari, Todoroki, Tokoyami, Tsu, Sero, Mineta and Aoyama away. Calliope did not envy him. His group would be taking part in a Capture the Flag mission. The two teams of four would go head to head, while Sans watched out for any misconduct. He surveyed the area from above, perched on one of his own GasterBlasters as a reminder of what would happen if he saw any cheating. Only Mineta and Sero seemed to take him seriously, while Dark Shadow had questioned whether the beast was sentient like him. Sans had shook his head and the black-being had looked almost disappointed. 

Calliope had to admit her students were doing well. They hadn’t triggered a single alarm nor alerted their presence to any of the patrolling robots. Those that they had encountered had been taken out in silence. This group clearly worked well as a team and had obviously used some of the advice and techniques she had offered them at the start. Kouda had apparently gotten over his fear of bugs and used spiders to scout the locations of every robot. They had even found where Calliope was stationed with the flag. Jirou and Shouji had been the ones to clear a safe path for Hagakure as they inched their way closer and closer to Calliope’s position. However, when Calliope had managed to catch the invisible girl with her temporary petrification power, they had all gasped in disbelief. 

“How did you manage to use a quirk that involves seeing your opponent on someone who is invisible?” Moaned Hagakure after Calliope had uttered the release command for her visor. The others had also gathered around her to hear how she’d done it. 

“Stealth is not just about remaining unseen. To move around undetected depends on many things.” Calliope stated. 

“Indeed, I did not see you. But, you made the mistake of wearing perfume today, didn’t you?” Calliope smiled as she heard Hagakure audibly winced.

“That, along with your rather heavy footfalls, alerted me to your path. It simply came down to me activating my quirk from beneath my visor and scanning the area for me to catch you.” 

The group grumbled and Hagakure apologised to them. 

“But don’t be so hard on yourselves! You did wonderfully up until the last minute. Learn from this small mistake and apply it to your future strategies.” 

As they headed back towards the main building, Calliope chatted happily with Hagakure and Jirou. It was nice to be able to talk to some girls. Despite how much she adored being in the company of her mentors, it was nice to have some female company. 

“I don’t mean to sound nosy but...” Hagakure began. And Calliope waited for the inevitability nosy question.

“How old are you three? It’s just, you don’t seem that much younger than your mentors.” 

Calliope smiled, “that’s because I’m not. I’m 22. Russ is 23 and Sam is 25.”

Hagakure made a sound of acknowledgement. 

“While the brothers had mastered their quirks early on while they were at school, it took me far longer to gain enough confidence to become a potential pro hero. Although I managed to graduate from Juggernaut, I still felt like I had a lot more to learn.” 

“How did you meet them?” Jirou asked. 

Calliope smiled fondly as she answered, “I was at school with them both. Although I knew Russ the best. When I graduated a year after him, we stayed in touch. Over the years, I saw just how quickly they were making a name for themselves. And one day, after bumping into them in the street, they offered to take me on as an apprentice to help me build up my self-esteem.” 

Hagakure gave a girly groan. “You’re so lucky to work so closely with such cute guys.” 

Calliope laughed while Jirou rolled her eyes. 

“Are the boys in your class not cute enough?” She joked, remembering their reactions when she had to kiss the boy named Todoroki. 

“I mean, yeah.” Hagakure sighed. “But Sam is totally dreamy! And Mina said she saw you and him-“ but she was cut off by Jirou who had thrust her elbow towards the sound of the invisible girl’s excited babbling. 

Calliope’s eyes narrowed beneath her visor. 

“Saw us doing what?” She asked, keeping her voice light. 

“Oh, er. She said she just saw you and Sam...hanging out by the fountain.” 

Calliope sighed. She remembered how she and him had sat so closely together, how they’d laughed over their bento boxes and how Sam had kissed her visor in the space where her forehead would be.

With a defeated smirk, she turned her head. “I know what you’re thinking so just go ahead and ask me already.” 

Hagakure squealed gleefully, her gloved hands balled into fists. “Okay, so are you two dating, or what?” 

Jirou looked unimpressed by her classmate’s forwardness. The two boys continued to remain silent as they walked. 

“No. No we are not.”

This clearly wasn’t the answer Hagakure was hoping to relay back to Mina. 

“Wait. Really?” 

Calliope couldn’t help but laugh. 

“Honestly, we’re just very close.” 

But as she said this, her mind drifted back to the day Sam had gifted her her first visor. When she accidentally used her permanent petrification power on him. She remembered the way his lips had moved against hers after she had released him from her quirk. How strange it had felt to her at the time. It has been her first proper kiss. Of course, due to the nature of her quirk, she had had to place her lips against others before. But that particular moment was the first time that the person she had kissed had actually kissed her back. All of a sudden, she felt as young and as easily in love as the teenage girls around her. 

She was the first to arrive back at their accommodation and had already showered and made tea when her two mentors finally got back. She heard them enter their room and decided to wait a while before going to ask them about their day. She was particularly curious to see how Sam had gotten on with Bakugo. 

After about an hour, she went to knock on their door and was greeted by Russ, sporting a cut eyebrow. 

“Ouch.” hissed Calliope after he told her how Kirishima had punched straight through his helmet. 

“Yeah. That boy’s quirk sure is something. And Ochako is surprisingly tough too!” 

He offered her tea but Calliope declined. She’d already drunk 3 cups and feared she wouldn’t get any sleep. 

She could hear the shower running and pictured a blackened Sam cursing Bakugo’s explosive quirk as he rubbed his hands through his singed white hair. But Russ informed her otherwise. 

“Sam looked surprisingly cheerful after his lesson. I’m guessing all went well.” 

Calliope smiled as she curled up on one of the soft armchairs. She had left her visor back in her room. If there was anyone she felt comfortable enough to be around without it, it was her two mentors. She briefly wondered how long she would have to keep calling them that. But that train of thought was halted as the bathroom door opened and out walked a shirtless Sam. 

Unlike his younger brother, who wasn’t afraid to flex in his tight shirts, Sam’s taste for loose clothing had often left Calliope to shamelessly wonder what kind of physique lay beneath. 

He greeted her as he walked by, rubbing a towel over his wet hair, dressed in nothing but sweatpants and slippers. Though he wasn’t as tall and lean as his younger brother, his shoulders were broad and his arms looked strong. But it was actually the large scar on his chest that caused her to stare. It looked like it had been caused by a burn. The uneven and slightly pearlescent skin covered at least a third of his chest and crept down across one side of his rib cage. He caught her looking before she could pretend she hadn’t seen. 

“The consequence of letting a 9 year old boy fire off his first ever GasterBlaster.” Sam smirked, pulling on a clean shirt. 

“He blasted our garden shed and the next 3 neighbours’ garden sheds to splinters.” Russ stated. His eyes glassy as he seemed to relive the memory in his head. 

Calliope frowned, “my goodness.” 

She pictured the two brothers as children in their garden, surrounded by dust and ash. The image of a young Russ cradling his scorched older brother in his arms as a miniature version of Sam’s GasterBlaster floated beside them, flashed in her mind. 

“Yeah. It was a total...” Sam began, perching on the arm of Calliope’s chair. 

“Don’t.” Russ warned, eyeing his brother’s creeping smirk with apprehension. 

“GasterBlaster disaster.” 

And Calliope couldn’t hold back her laughter despite herself.


	10. Sun and Moon

Calliope and her mentors continued to teach Class 1A for the next few weeks. They switched up the groups and alternated their lesson plans so that each student got a chance to learn from each tutor. Calliope had grown fond of the students, especially the girls who had begun to regard her more like an older sister than a teacher. In the evenings, she would occasionally hang out in the student dorm while the girls styled her long, matcha coloured hair and painted her sharp nails. Sometimes, she didn’t even feel the need to wear her visor. 

“Hey, Calli. I got a question for ya!” Mina declared over the slice of cake Sato had baked for them. “Your quirk doesn’t work on yourself, does it?” 

Calliope swallowed her mouthful of Victoria Sponge and shook her head. 

“No. But if someone else catches my eye in a reflection then my quirk will still take effect on them.” 

“Yeah, I remember it working on me during our first lesson! I saw you reflected in Todoroki’s ice!” Tsu declared. 

Calliope smiled. For some reason, the fact that Tsu had remembered this incident made her feel warm inside. 

Even her two mentors had formed bonds with certain students. Kirishima and Russ often sparred together during free periods and Kaminari and Sero enjoyed listening to his exploits in America in the canteen. Tokoyami had even spent an evening discussing swords with the Bone-Wielding hero. Russ’ manly charisma and contagious enthusiasm often got the students hyped during lessons. Young Ochako was particularly open with him and had expanded her fighting style considerably thanks to his guidance. 

Sam’s laid back attitude and calm demeanour often had students gravitate towards him during times of stress and anxiety. He would soon have them laughing to his cheesy jokes and sooth them with his fruity, modulated voice that Calliope had always found so charming. 

She had always thought Russ was like the sun, fiery and burning with passion. He energised and lit up a room with his presence. His warmth radiated from his honey-coloured irises and his wide smile. Sam, on the other hand, was like the moon, calming and quietly sensual. Though his eyes looked perpetually tired, they still managed to emit an energy that could pull you in like the tide. She had never witnessed him lose his cool, even in difficult situations. Like the moon, he had a dark side but it manifested purely in the form of his immensely powerful ultimate move. 

She had only witnessed it in person a handful of times. She remembered the blinding white light of the blast and the rush of heat that threatened to turn her to ash had it not been for her mentors’ combined protective structure. It’s monumentally destructive force was one of the reasons he only chose to fire the weapon when absolutely necessary and if his brother was there to construct protective barriers to minimise collateral damage to the surrounding area. It’s why, though she had feared he may have triggered it by accident, she knew he never really had the intention to unleash it on Bakugo that time. Though she had told many of the UA students this, that didn’t stop them from asking Sam to demonstrate his ultimate move at the end of every lesson. 

“No can do, kiddos.” He’d say, pulling his beanie hat down over his eyes and settling down for one of his many naps. 

“I gotta catch up on my beauty sleep.” 

“Honestly, Sans! You’re almost as bad as Mr Aizawa!” Hagakure squealed. 

Sam chuckled as he kicked back and placed his hands behind his head. 

“Heh. Well, sadly for your teacher, there ain’t enough hours in the day.” 

Calliope would have laughed along with the students but the approaching dark figure made her swallow her amusement.

“I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that, Sans.” Aizawa’s flat voice spoke.

“Aizawa. I apologise for my brother’s cheek.” Russ said sternly, eyeing his older sibling’s grinning face disapprovingly. 

The UA teacher sighed and turned to his class. 

“Well done out there today. I’ve been following your progress with our three guests. I’m pleased to see how well you’ve taken on board their lessons.” 

He then turned to Calliope and she suddenly had the desire to repeat what she had done upon meeting him for the first time during his visit to America. 

When she had discovered what Aizawa’s quirk was when she was at still just a student at Juggernaut, she had approached him in the corridor and begged him to use it on her. All she wanted was to have a conversation with someone while looking them in their eye. 

The memory of it caused her to flush beneath her visor. 

“Calli. Please could you escort Class 1A back to their dorms.”

She nodded and beckoned them to follow her. 

“Bakugo. Todoroki. You two stay here. There’s something I’d like to discuss with you and the Skelebros.” 

Aizawa’s order made Calliope stall. She turned and glanced from Russ to Sam. The latter had removed his hat from his eyes to peer curiously from face to face. 

The two UA boys broke from Calliope’s circle as the rest of the class continued on their way back to the dorms. 

“Off you go, Calli.” Russ said cheerfully, “you did great today.” 

Sam cast her a thumbs up. 

With one last look at Aizawa, she turned on a heel and tailed the class back to their accommodation. 

“So?” She asked her mentors when they finally turned into the corridor. She’d heard them approaching and stuck her head out of her door. 

“What did Aizawa want?” 

Sam gave a small smile. “To punish me, clearly.” 

Calliope frowned as Sam jerked his head towards their door, motioning for her to follow them inside. 

Russ clicked his tongue. 

“He is not punishing you, Sam! Aizawa clearly has a lot of faith and trust in you to request such a thing.” 

“Request what?” Calliope pressed, taking her usual seat in the armchair by the window. 

“He wants Sam and I to have a one to one session with Todoroki and Bakugo as part of their remedial lessons.” 

The look on Sam’s face clearly showed that he would be tutoring Bakugo while Russ would be taking on Todoroki.

“I see,” she said, trying not to smile too openly at Sam’s theatrical eye-roll. 

“So what do you have planned for them?” 

“Well...” Russ began as he hung up his trademark red scarf that he wore as part of his hero costume, “Aisawa suggested Todoroki and I work on his hero’s presence. That is, he thinks the boy should learn how to connect with his audience more.”

It made sense. Though Todoroki was a skilled fighter and diligent student, he lacked certain qualities in his communication abilities. Calliope agreed Russ would have a fair amount to teach the teen about charisma and allure. 

“And Bakugo?” Calliope asked, turning to face the older sibling who was propped up against the headboard of his bed eating a pack of peanuts. 

“Aizawa seems to think I’m qualified enough to take Bakugo on a field trip as a way of teaching him to chill out a bit more.” He tossed a handful of nuts into his mouth and shook his head as he chewed. 

“Apparently the kid likes to go hiking.”

Calliope smirked at the thought of Sam hiking up a trail. Not that Sam didn’t enjoy the great outdoors, but he was more likely to bask beneath the shade of a tree for 4 hours than to trek up the side of a mountain. 

“Wow. That is kinda a big responsibility, Sam.” She agreed with Russ. 

Sam scrunched up the now empty packet of peanuts and tossed it into the trashcan on the other side of the room. 

“I imagine only one of us will make it back alive.” He joked. 

Now it was Russ’ turn to roll his eyes. 

“Honestly, Sam. You’re meant to be a tutor! Try and be a bit more professional.” 

The older sibling grinned. 

“Ah, c’mon bro. You know I’m only joking. And haven’t I been professional this whole trip?” 

Russ squinted at him and Calliope wondered if he was going to list the many times his older brother’s professionalism had in fact been questionable. He remained silent however and simply shook his head. 

“So when are you taking him?” Calliope asked, still smirking at the idea of Sam and Bakugo hiking through the wilderness together.

“Their sessions will take place on Saturday,” Russ informed her. 

“Saturday?” Calliope echoed. It didn’t seem fair to encroach on the students’ weekend but she supposed it wasn’t particularly a lesson like the rest of them. 

Sam had sank into his pillows and closed his eyes. 

“I can’t wait.” He mumbled. 

Saturday came round quicker than Sam and Bakugo had anticipated. Calliope had heard the door to the brothers’ room open at the crack of dawn. Sam and Bakugo were set to head out at day break and spend the whole day together. 

Calliope met Russ for breakfast and she quizzed him on what sort of things he’d be teaching Todoroki. 

“I suppose I’ll just be coaching him the same way I coached you, back when you first joined us.” He said with an affectionate smile. 

Calliope returned it over her mug of coffee as memories of Russ teaching her to speak more confidently and smile as she did so flooded her mind. 

“Shoulders back, chin up and always give the people a dazzling smile. I know you must have one.” He’d told her. 

“Although, if I’d have known back then that all it would take to make you smile was one of Sam’s ridiculous puns, I needn’t have put so much effort in.” Russ smirked as he took a bite out of his apple. 

Calliope scoffed lightly, removing her visor because her steaming coffee was making it fog up. 

“Oh, Russ. Don’t say that. Your pep talks helped me through so much. I can’t thank you enough.”

She reached over and squeezed his arm. 

“You’re welcome, Calli. Although, sometimes I feel as though I should be thanking you.”

She quirked an eyebrow as she took a sip of coffee. It needed more sugar. As she plopped another cube into the steaming liquid, she asked him what he meant.

“Well, ever since you joined us, Sam has changed for the better.”

She tried not to roll her eyes but failed anyway. 

“No, I mean it.” He urged, and set down his half eaten apple. 

“For a while after graduating from Juggernaut, he sorta went into a slump. You and I both know he has never really been drawn to certain aspects of being an American hero, the fame, the glamour...” 

Russ paused to sigh before continuing. 

“But once you came to us for mentoring, he seemed to come back out of his shell. I’d say you even brought us closer together.” 

Calliope tutted quietly. 

“You’re laying it on a bit thick, Russ. You two have always been close.” 

Russ gave an uncharacteristic shrug that she was more used to seeing from his brother. 

“Perhaps while we were growing up. What with our mom gone and our Dad always busy with work. But, as I said, Sam lost his motivation after leaving school. You helped bring it back.” 

Calliope tucked a loose lock of her matcha coloured hair behind her ear. The girls had planned to braid it later that day. 

As Calliope resorted to remaining in a bashful silence, her coffee now just the right sweetness, Russ reached over the table to take her shoulder. He squeezed it gently as he pushed to his feet. 

“Let’s hope he and Bakugo get on today, hm?” 

And with that, he left her to her coffee as he headed to his session with Todoroki.


	11. Buzz Clack

The trip to the hiking trail had been a painfully quiet one. Sam had tried to ease a conversation from Bakugo but his responses were always clipped.

Usually, Sam didn’t mind silence. He often enjoyed comfortably bouts with Calliope where they would simply sit and enjoy each other’s presence.

But something about the silence Bakugo elicited urged the older mentor to make an effort to break it. Being alone with the teenager soon proved to Sam why Aizawa had suggested the trip in the first place. The kid always looked on the verge of an outcry. Though, perhaps it was more due to the fact that he had been forced to spend an entire day with the person he had continuously lost against over the past few weeks. 

“You did great in my last lesson by the way, Bakugo” Sam attempted as they crested a hill. He squinted at the compass in his hand. They had been walking for only 20 minutes and he already wished to be sat on the train back to UA. He had originally planned to take Calli to lunch today. 

But of course, he had traveled to Japan for a reason. And that was to share his knowledge and skills with the students of UA. He chose not to give up on Bakugo just yet. 

“Oh yeah...” the teenager grunted. Sam could tell he was feigning interest. And crappily at that. 

“Yeah. Your communication with your teammates was a lot better.” 

Bakugo huffed. “Those nerds need all the help they can get.” 

Sam paused to take in the scenery around them. Tall trees were at their backs while a snaking river and it’s rocky beaches stretched out in the valley beneath them. Mountains broke the skyline in the distance. 

“I guess we all do from time to time.” Sam responded. 

“Yeah. Like you?” Retorted the teen gruffly. “Do you even know where you’re going? We left the trail behind ages ago.”

Sam had spent the entire night before planing their route, coffee and guilt for leaving it so late spurring him on. 

There were many things Sam excelled at. He was a top marksman, a great baker, a natural comedian and a surprisingly good dancer (after a few drinks) to name a few. Orienteering however, was not his forté. But, not wanting to give Bakugo another reason to dislike him, he turned towards his impatient regard and said “o’ course.” 

The teen snorted and they took off along the tree line.

Meanwhile back at UA, Russ was stood facing an impassive-looking Todoroki. 

“Your teachers tell me you lack a little pizzazz when it comes to interacting with an audience.” The American hero stated. Although he had chosen to not wear his hero costume, he kept his signature red scarf around his neck and flicked it over his shoulder as he spoke. 

“Now, I don’t want to make you sing and dance like some show-pony...” Russ reassured, “but perhaps we could work on your projection and posture.”

Todoroki gave a curt nod. And as Russ eyed the boy’s ridged stance, he figured he was going to have an interesting few hours. 

“Kid, how ‘bout we stop for lunch?” Sam suggested casually, breaking the silence that had lasted the best part of an hour. “My feet hurt like hell.” 

He had already slumped down onto a rock before Bakugo could even agree to the idea. The latter growled quietly in frustration as Sam began to unpack their sandwiches. He tossed Bakugo his. The grumbling blond caught it deftly before plopping down onto the grass opposite him. 

They ate in silence with only the sound of birdsong and the rush of a distant river filling the air. That is, until the peculiar sound of buzzing and clacking cut through the stillness. Bakugo raised his head slowly towards the source of the noise. Eye twitching with every buzz clack, buzz, clack his disbelieving stare fell upon the culprit. Before him, a glassy-eyed Sam held his sandwich crust in one hand while absentmindedly tossing two objects in another. 

Buzz. Clack. Buzz. Clack. 

“What...” Bakugo began in a strained voice, “are those?” 

Sam’s eyes slipped back into focus as he was snapped from his trance. 

“Huh?” He grunted, catching the objects in his fist. 

“Oh, these?” He took a final bite from his sandwich and held out his hand. His next words were spoken with a mouthful of bread and chicken. 

“Just something I picked up from the store when I bought lunch.”

He tossed the two, highly polished stones towards Bakugo. 

Buzz. Clack.

He caught them in a tight fist. 

“And where have you been keeping them?” He snarled, squeezing the two stones til his knuckles turned white. 

Sam chewed slowly, swallowed then said simply, “in my pocket.” 

It happened in an instant. An infuriated roar. A flash of sparks. A blinding explosion. When the smoke cleared, Bakugo was on his feet glaring at a bone-made sphere in the spot where Sam had been sitting. Or was still sat, thanks to his quick reflexes. 

“Are you kidding me?!” Bakugo bellowed, the stones now just dust between his fingers. 

“You had buzz magnets in your damn coat pocket this entire time?!” 

The thick structure Sam had erected around himself dissolved back to dust,

revealing his bemused expression beneath. Realisation dawned on his features in the short silence that followed. 

“Whoops.”

Bakugo roared again. 

“My bad.”

More sparks.

“Guess you should have carried the compass, huh?” 

A twitch of an eye. 

“Honestly, I’ve never gone orienteering before. Go figure, eh?” 

And when another blast rang out, Bakugo could have sworn he heard chuckling coming from inside the next sphere that appeared.

“That was a lot better!” Russ said encouragingly. 

Todoroki blinked. Neither of them were actually convinced by this statement. 

“But try making that smile reach your eyes.”

Another curt nod. 

“You’re brilliant in combat, Todoroki. But heroes also need to ignite passion and inspiration in others before and after the battle is won. Consider All Might. He can win over a crowd just with just his image.”

Russ gave a small sigh, followed by a kind smile. 

“Let’s try this one more time, shall we?”

Although they were undeniably lost, Sam remained completely at ease. Bakugo, on the other hand was still seething from the school-boy error committed by his elder. 

“Calm down. Now’s the perfect opportunity to prove to those who doubt you that you can actually keep a level head.” Sam said easily as he walked the water’s edge later that afternoon. 

“We should keep moving and find the trail we were on this morning!” snarled Bakugo as he watched Sam conjure a bone-made spear from the dust brushed off his coat, courtesy of Bakugo’s earlier outburst. 

“I said relax. Now...” he swiped his left hand and the spear plunged into the water. When he called it back with a flick of his wrist, a hefty trout hung on the other end. “Help me catch dinner.”

Bakugo growled. “Dinner? We’re supposed to be heading back to UA tonight!” 

Sam sent two more spears into the water. Only one came back with a fish. 

“You ever been fishing before?” He asked, ignoring Bakugo’s question. 

“No...” he answered, his tone dangerous. 

“You should take it up as a hobby. It might help with that anger of yours.”

And when Bakugo marched to the water’s edge and blasted the surface of the river with his quirk, Sam could only sigh as he eyed the many charred trout that had floated to the surface. 

“Shouldn’t Sam and Bakugo be back by now?” Mina asked as she finished the final braid in Calliope’s hair. 

The latter glanced out the window and saw that night had begun to fall across campus. 

“Sam did say that they’d be returning this evening...” she mused, frowning slightly. 

“But I wouldn’t worry too much.” 

“That’s right, my dears! Have faith in your comrades abilities!” Spoke an unfamiliar yet recognisable voice. 

The girls turned to its owner only to gape at them. 

“T-Todoroki?” Hagakure stammered, stifling her giggles. 

The boy in question stood before them awkwardly, his hand gripped firmly on his hip in a pose Calliope was all too familiar with. Although not coming from Todoroki. Realisation dawned on her. 

“Are you feeling okay, Todoroki? You look kinda weird.” Mina frowned. 

“You don’t sound like yourself either...” Jirou added. 

With a tiny sigh, he returned to his normal posture, allowing his face to relax and his eyes to close. 

“Apologies. I was simply trying to-“

“Take Papyrus’ advice?” Calliope finished for him. 

Todoroki nodded, his eyes still closed as some of the girls giggled softly. 

“You know, between you and me. I think you’re doing just fine on your own.” Calliope assured him when he finally opened his eyes. 

“Thank you, Calliope. Although, I must say your mentor is quite inspiring.”

Calliope laughed. 

“Yeah, you could say that.” 

“Why does part of me wonder you planned this whole thing on purpose?” Bakugo sneered into the flames of their campfire. 

Sam picked quietly at his roast trout. Bakugo hadn’t touched his. 

“Why does part of me wonder why you can’t just relax and enjoy the peace and quiet?” Sam replied, his tone easy. 

Before Bakugo could snap back at him he added.

“It was your buddy Kirishima who suggested to take you hiking.” 

This comment seemed to extinguish some of his anger. And when he replied, his voice was quieter. 

“Oh yeah?” his lips curled into a half snarl, half smirk.

“Yeah- said you liked the outdoors. But you could’ve fooled me with the way you’ve been acting this whole time.”

Sam popped another piece of fish in his mouth and smiled as he chewed. 

The action seemed to prompt Bakugo to finally acknowledge his own food and he began to strip away the meat from the delicate bones.

“Yeah. Well, maybe if I wasn’t forced to accompany some damn nerd who doesn’t know how to use a compass,” he grumbled as he began to eat his trout. 

Sam chuckled. “We’ll find our way back tomorrow. I have an idea how to regain our bearings. It’ll be fun.”

Bakugo scoffed.

“Until then though, why don’t you try to enjoy your time off campus. There’s more to life than being a hero.” Sam turned his eyes skywards at the constellations above them. 

“Surely being out here should remind you of that?” 

Bakugo kept his scowling eyes on his fish and they finished the rest of their meals in silence. 

The fire crackled and the crickets chirped. The smell of woodsmoke hung on the cool night air. When Sam looked up again, he saw Bakugo’s head tilted towards the stars. Perhaps it was a trick of the light caused by the dancing flames between them, but he could have sworn he saw a smile. 

“They should have been back hours ago,” Aizawa stated in his monotone voice. 

Calliope sighed as she nodded her head. 

“I know Aizawa. But I wouldn’t worry.”

She removed her phone from her pocket and turned its screen towards him. 

“Sans messaged me to let me know they’d be returning tomorrow. He says everything ‘s fine.” 

In fact, his actual words has been ‘it’s all campfire songs and brotherly bonding.’ But Calliope had hoped Aizawa hadn’t seen that part of the message as she returned her phone to her bag. 

Aizawa hummed in acknowledgement. “Fine. But next time, he should inform me of any change of plans.”

“Of course.”

Once Aizawa had left the corridor, Calliope turned to Russ and they both just frowned at each other. 

“What was that you said about him being a responsible adult on our first day here?” He heaved. 

Calliope sighed. “We shouldn’t dwell on it. You know how Sam can be with his odd tricks.”

Luckily for their team, he only pulled stunts like this outside of battle. 

“I’m sure they’re fine.”


	12. Eye to Eye

Sam awoke to a sharp pain in his shin. 

“Wake up, Sans...” Bakugo grumbled after having kicked the older male in the leg. 

Sam grunted, slowly pushing himself into a sitting position. They had both slept in their coats by the fire that night. The flames had burnt down to embers and Bakugo had begun kicking dirt over it. 

“Any idea what time it is?” Sam yawned, rubbing the last of the smoke and sleep from his eyes. 

“No. My phone died last night.” 

Sam checked his to find his screen was also black. It must have also run out of battery soon after he sent his text to Calliope. 

Turning his head skyward to glance up at the sun, Sam guessed it was around noon. They had clearly both slept well despite only having Sam’s bone-made shelters and the clothes on their back to sleep in. 

With a sleepy wave of his hand, Sam turned the shelters back to dust and rose to his feet. Both he and Bakugo certainly looked they’d spent the night in the wilderness. Their clothes were dirtied and their hair was now the resting place of multiple leaves and small twigs. The stench of woodsmoke clung to their bodies as they stretched out their limbs. 

“So...” Bakugo began, brushing the debris from his blond spikes. “What’s this damn plan of yours?” 

Sam pulled off his beanie hat and shook out the dried leaves. He ran his hand through his messy, white hair before pulling his hat back on with a grin. He flashed Bakugo an impish look as he flexed his left hand. Two GasterBlasters immediately rose from the dust and dirt underfoot and stationed themselves at Sam’s sides. 

“You’re not scared of heights, are you?” He grinned and glimpsed Bakugo almost do the same. 

Calliope yawned as she pulled a comb through her long hair. She’d slept in late and was thankful that Russ had let her. Once she’d finished her routine, she rapped on her mentor’s door. He was quick to answer it and was already fully dressed. Calliope was still in her lounge wear of leggings, baggy t-shirt and bed socks. She’d stolen a pair of Sam’s slippers. 

“Good afternoon, Calli. Sleep well?” He asked brightly as he welcomed her inside. She smelt freshly brewed coffee and was instantly drawn towards it. 

“Yes, thank you. How about you?” But she needn’t have asked, as he was clearly energised. However, that could have been due to the fact that he was still slightly frantic with worry about the whereabouts of his brother and the troublesome UA student. 

“Indeed! Have you heard from Sam?” 

Calliope shook her head as she poured herself a mug and added some sugar. She missed her usual dose of cream that she’d grown so accustom to having in America. 

“Not since last night.”

Russ hummed in thought as he gazed out the window.

“There are worse ways to travel, eh kid?” Sam grinned as the wind lifted the hair that escaped his hat. He was crouched with one foot on the snout of his GasterBlaster and the other on its forehead as he cruised alongside Bakugo. It had taken Sam a moment to persuade the younger male that, although he trusted the student’s capability at using his quirk own quirk to soar through the air, it was in everyone’s interest to avoid blasting away the tree tops below and keeping the tranquility of the wilderness. And, as he looked over at Bakugo as he rode the second GasterBlaster, it would have been hard for the young teen to convey anything other than quiet glee across to his companion.

“Not bad, for a nerd.” He heard Bakugo call over the rush of the wind. 

They traveled at a comfortable speed, soaring towards the town they had taken the train to using the river as a guide. Though they had walked for hours yesterday, it had taken them less than 40 minutes to arrive at their destination. 

Sam landed them both in a nearby clearing, vanishing the two car-sized skulls with a casual wave of his hand before they headed back towards the main road into town. The use of his GasterBlasters had drained a lot of his energy and he soon felt his limbs grow heavy. Once they boarded the train back to the city that housed UA, the gentle rock of the carriage soon sent Sam to sleep. 

This time when Bakugo woke him, he did so with more care. Sam was gently shaken away by the shoulder as the train pulled into the station. 

“Hey, were here.” He grunted, hoisting his bag onto his shoulder. 

Sam yawned and nodded softly in acknowledgement. 

“Got any plans for the rest of the day?” The older male asked as they crossed the city and headed towards the UA campus. 

Bakugo kept his eyes straight ahead as he answered. 

“I’ll probably just study in my room. The common area is always full on a weekend. I can barely hear myself think in there.” 

Sam sighed, “and you call me the nerd.” He smirked, his hands in the pockets of his jacket. He could feel that some dried leaves had found their way inside them. 

Bakugo scoffed. A short silence followed. 

“So, I’ve been thinking...” Bakugo began, and Sam noted that this would be the first proper time the hot-headed student had been the one to initiate a conversation. 

“What made you and your brother take on the girl?” 

He hadn’t used her name, but at least he didn’t refer to her as the Snake. 

“Calli? It was my brother who offered her the opportunity.” 

Sam remembered the day clearly. They had bumped into Calliope in the street. She was dressed in a white sundress and wore a wide brimmed hat that hid most of her face when she titled her head down. Of course, she hadn’t looked them in the eye when she spoke. Her voice was quiet, and she tripped over her sentences. 

Unlike his younger brother, Sam wasn’t familiar with her, despite having attended the same school. He had stood back and listened as Russ suggested that Calliope should come and train under them as their apprentice. Sam had thought the arrangement strange at the time. She was only a year younger that Russ and 3 years younger than Sam. When he thought of an apprentice, he often considered the age gap to be more similar to the one he and Bakugo had. 

“Though she was around our age, Calliope lacked a lot of self-confidence and had a lot of trouble with her quirk.”

Bakugo cast Sam a sidewards glance. “Oh?”

The blue-eyed male lifted a shoulder and said simply, “she hated it.” 

Bakugo seemed to consider this for a moment. 

“She still seems to hate it now.” He stated, casting a frown at Sam who’s eyes found the gates of UA. The latter pondered whether Bakugo had taken much time to reflect on what had happened back when Calliope had petrified him. Though the young boy was clearly humiliated at the time, Sam wondered if the angry UA student had taken the time to consider how it must have been for Calliope. Not just when she had to kiss him and his two classmates, but how it must be for her on a daily basis. Bakugo was clearly strong-willed and highly determined. He looked his enemies and his problems dead in the eye. Calliope could do that too, of course, but it was every other context that she lacked and therefore craved. 

“Yeah, well. You can imagine what it’s like for Calli. She spent a lot of her childhood alone, and her quirk didn’t help the fact.”

Sam had quickly learnt, during her time with them, that Calliope was a real romantic at heart. She could could often be found curled up with a soppy novel or listening to slow ballads when she thought no one else was around to hear. She craved the intimate moments those art forms described- to share a loving gaze, to whisper your lover’s name, to kiss and be kissed back...

Her quirk denied her of all those things. Or made them far more difficult to achieve, anyway. 

Bakugo had lapsed back into silence. 

“She’s tough though, our Calli. She’s an asset to our team. I doubt she’ll have to refer to us as her mentors for much longer.”

Bakugo grumbled. 

“Why do you chose to work with people?” He asked as they turned onto the campus. 

Sam quirked an eyebrow. “Hm? You mean Calli and my brother?” 

Bakugo cast him another side wards glance.

“Yeah. I heard talk that you could have been one of the top 10 heroes but you chose not to go after it.” The teenager turned his eyes back to the towering buildings of UA and continued. 

“Instead, you choose to work alongside Papyrus and Calliope.” 

He used her name, finally. 

Sam sighed, his fingers toying with the dried leaves in his pockets.

“Honestly, kid. I gave up trying to be number 1 a long time ago.”

He saw Bakugo squint. 

“I’ll continue to help people as much as I can. But chasing titles like that simply doesn’t appeal to me anymore.”

They reached the dorm buildings and began to head towards the one that housed Class 1A. 

“Why not?” Bakugo grunted, as they approached the front doors of the dorm. 

Sam inhaled, keeping the air in his chest as he formulated his answer in his head. 

“It’s just not something I want for myself.” He breathed. 

“So long as I have Russ and Calli, I’m happy with the life I have. Besides, do you really see a nerd like me taking over from someone like All Might? C’mon.” 

Sam grinned his trademark grin as he held open the dorm building door. Bakugo grunted what could have been considered a small laugh as he passed. 

“Sans!” Mina called as the two, bedraggled males entered the common area. She hopped towards him and the two of them initiated the short handshake they had developed over the course of the past few week. It ended with fist bump to which Bakugo rolled his eyes at. 

“Hey, man!” Kirishima called to his blond friend as he crossed the room.

“We thought you two had fallen down a cave or something.”

Sam chuckled, “wouldn’t that have been something?”

Hagakure has also joined Mina at Sam’s side and her girly voice sounded as her t-short bobbed in the air. 

“You should probably let Papyrus know you’re back. He has been kinda worried.” 

Tsu nodded from her perch on the couch. 

“Yeah, Calli has been doing her best to calm him down but when you didn’t turn up last night, he started to become a little frantic.” 

Bakugo had stalked off back to his room with Kirishima without a second look back at him Sam. The older male didn’t dwell on the fact. In his mind, the trip had been a success overall. They were both still alive at least. 

“To be honest, I’m starting to think Papyrus is a little scared of Mr Aizawa.” Tsu mused. 

Hagakure and Mina laughed along with Sam at Tsu’s speculation. 

“Well, I can handle Aizawa.” Sam smiled. 

“Well, you handled a night alone with Bakugo,” Mina joked, placing her hands on her hips. 

“Yeah, how come you guys were so late back? Did you get lost?” 

The memory of the buzz magnets flashed through Sam’s mind. 

“Na. We were just having such a good time we thought we’d extend our trip.” 

The girls squinted suspiciously at him but before they could question him any further, Calliope had entered the common area after knocking gently on the door frame. 

“Sam!” She called, clearly surprised to see him. 

“Heya,” He answered casually. Her hair was wavy today. The girls must have braided it again for her the night before. The long, matcha-coloured locks bounced about her as she strode over to him. 

Sam watched her approach at a pace in which he feared she’d throw her arms around him right in front of the students. But instead, upon reaching him, her fist collided heavily against his upper arm. 

“Where have you been, Gaster?!” She hissed, looking and sounding even more serpent-like than usual. She was wearing her visor. Though it concealed her eyes, he could feel them glaring at him from beneath it. The fact that she’d called him by his last name only emphasised her clear frustration with him. 

“Ow. Nice to see you too, Miss Chloros.” 

He saw her bristle slightly at the use of her own last name and mentally smirked. 

“Do you know how worried you had your brother?” She asked as some of the on-looking students began to giggle. 

Sam smiled along with them as he answered. “Well, the students have just informed me. And I suppose I should thank you for taking care of him for me.” 

Calliope nodded, her viper-head visor giving her the illusion of a snake about to strike. 

“Yes. You should. And you should inform Aizawa that you and Bakugo are back safe, too.” 

Sam stifled a yawn. The nap on the train hadn’t been enough to fully replenish his energy. 

“Yeah sure. I’ll go see him now.” 

His words made Calliope relax her shoulders. 

“Good.” Was all she could say. 

As he made his way towards the door, he turned his head to call over his shoulder.

“I owe you one, Calli. Let’s go out for dinner again tonight.”

And when the door swung closed behind him, Mina and Hagakure cooed happily. 

“And I thought you said you two weren’t dating!?”


	13. Girls and Gossip

Despite Russ’ fears, Aizawa hadn’t been too troubled by Sam and Bakugo’s extended trip. 

As Calliope and her mentors’ trip to Japan entered it’s last week, thoughts began to turn to their farewell party. 

It was the students who had suggested it. They had even asked their teachers and principal for permission to host it on campus. It would be a small event, only involving the Class of 1A and their three American guests. 

“I can’t believe it’s your last week with us,” Yaoyorozu declared sadly at the end of another lesson. 

“Yeah, man! It’s gone by so fast!” Added Kirishima, returning his hardened body back to normal. 

“Indeed it has. You have taught us much during your stay. It will be sad to see you go.” Iida finished. 

Russ sighed deeply. 

“All good things must eventually come to an end, I’m afraid.” 

Deku looked particularly saddened by the tutors’ inevitably departure. He had grown close to all three of them during their stay. He would often spar with Russ and talk with Sam about American heroes. Calliope would help him sketch in his notebook when he couldn’t quite get the costume or support gear of a particular hero right. 

“Do you think you’ll come visit again sometime?” Deku asked in a small voice as they walked back towards the main campus. 

“Of course we will, kiddo.” Sam said cheerily. But Deku’s face remained glum. 

“Don’t look so down, Deku!” Ochako smiled at his side. 

“We still have the party to look forward to! And there’s still so much to get done before this weekend!” 

At this, the green haired teen’s expression lifted slightly. Ochako seemingly always managed to raise his spirits. 

“You’re all very sweet to do this just for us.” Calliope commented. She had seen them hard at work in the evenings decorating the courtyard for the event. They’d hung fairy lights and banners along the trees and she had even heard Jirou and Kaminari discussing what music they’d play. Satou and Yaoyorozu were apparently in charge of catering the event and had refused any help from Sam and Russ who, the class were surprised to hear, enjoyed cooking and baking very much. 

“I make the best pasta dishes!” Russ had proudly declared “and my brother is actually quite the baker!” 

Calliope had even witnessed Bakugo help Kaminari carry some heavy-looking speakers the other day. He grumbled the whole time but that was beside the point. It seemed his and Sam’s little outing really had had some sort of impact on him. Bakugo hadn’t even referred to her as the Snake for a while...

“Hosting you guys a farewell party is the least we can do!” Sero said with a casual wave of his arm. 

“It’s been awesome having you teach us!” 

Calliope exchanged warm glances with her two mentors. She was really going to miss Japan. 

As the big day drew near, Calliope had been approached by the girls of 1A in the canteen. 

“Hey, Calli!” Ochako greeted, her hands clasped behind her back as she leant over the table towards her. 

“We were wondering if you had any plans this Saturday?”

“Yeah!” Hagakure chimed as her floating uniform popped up from behind Ochako. 

“Because we’re going to head into town to go shopping for our party outfits!” 

“Wanna come with?” Mina added.

Calliope set aside her iced-tea. 

“Oh, that’s so nice of you to ask,” and she couldn’t help but blush when she admitted, “I’d love to come with you girls!” 

The party was to take place Saturday evening giving the students the entire day to get ready. The girls had informed the guys that there were a few things left to prep in the courtyard and had batted their eyelashes and smiled their sweet smiles when they asked if they could see to them. 

“Why can’t you help?” Bakugo snarled over his magazine. 

“Because we still have to go get our outfits for the party!” Mina retorted. 

Mineta seemed to be drooling in the corner. 

“Don’t worry, girls...” He crooned, his eyes glassy. 

“We’ll handle everything here. You just concentrate on choosing some cute, little dresses.” 

Yaoyorozu grimaced as she eyed the short, salivating boy. 

“Erm. Yeah, thanks Mineta.” Hagakure quipped. 

When Saturday finally came around, although Calliope was disappointed that her time in Japan was drawing to a close, she was excited to be spending a day away from campus with the young girls she had grown so fond of. She slipped into the only dress she’d brought with her on the trip and counted the money in her purse. There was just enough yen left from the dollars she had exchanged to buy her a new outfit for the party. 

After checking her appearance in the mirror before leaving, she headed out the door to meet the girls at the same fountain she and Sam had eaten bento boxes on way back at the beginning of their trip. 

“Wow Calli! You look so nice!” Exclaimed Ochako as her eyes traveled over the older girl’s pale sundress and sandals. Calliope returned the compliment with a smile. 

It was Yaoyorozu that seemed to lead the girls around the city. Not everyone in the group had the intention of buying a new dress. Only Mina, Yaoyorozu, Hagakure and Calli were looking to make a purchase as Jirou and Ochako planned to borrow one from Yaoyorozu’s closet. Tsu planned to wear one of her own from home. 

Yaoyorozu took them to all the high-end stores that Mina and Hagakure moaned that they couldn’t afford. When Calliope had offered to contribute some money towards two dresses the young girls were ogling, they had reluctantly declined. Sadly for Yaoyorozu, many of the expensive gowns weren’t tailored to girls with her generous chest size. They left the first few stores in disappointment. Tsu had kept them motivated as they searched the next few shops. This time, the clothes were in the girls’ price range. They wasted no time in gathering arm fulls of options and hauling them into the changing rooms. Mina’s pile was a burst of bright colours and bold patterns, Hagakure’s a collection of pastels and frills and Yaoyorozu’s an elegant selection of understated chic. 

“Oh, Calli!” Ochako had chimed from the other side of the changing room door. “We think this dress would look so good on you!” 

The dress in question was thrown over the top of the door. It slithered to the floor as if it were made of mercury and pooled at Calliope’s feet. It was made of emerald green satin with gold embellishments. She eyed it apprehensively on the hanger. She’d never worn something as elegant as this before. Wriggling out of the previous dress she’d tried on, she slipped into the soft fabric of the girls’ option. It was backless and mid length, the hem gracing her calves. The neckline plunged considerably but, due to her modest chest size, remained tasteful. She studied herself in the mirror. Even with her visor, the dress made her look like a greek goddess. 

“It’s lovely but I’m not sure it’s the right dress for the occasion,” she called, blushing at the thought of appearing before her mentors and students in such a garment. 

“Show us!” Mina called.

“Let’s see it!” Ochako added. 

Hesitantly, she opened the door and stepped out of her changing room. The girls’ faces gasped in unison as their eyes fell upon her.

“That’s the one!” Yaoyorozu beamed, her eyes sparkling. 

The other girls nodded in agreement and refused to let Calliope try on anything else after. 

Mina, Hagakure and Yaoyorozu also purchased their outfits from the same store. 

Tsu had helped Mina find a fun, figure flattering playsuit in shades of purple, black and pink. Calliope was reminded of those funky tropical frogs you might see in the rainforest. It suited Mina’s aura well. 

Hagakure had opted for a playful, frilly number embellished with chiffon roses and ribbon. When she had tried it on, it had looked like fairies had magicked a gown and danced it across the air. 

Lastly, Yaoyorozu had finally managed to find a gown that could contain her large breasts. It was a floor length halter neck in a vivid red. Her tall, curvaceous figure filled out every inch of fabric and Calliope had trouble keeping her eyes off her. She was a striking vision. Jirou had blushed the moment Yaoyorozu had stepped out of the changing room. 

Shopping now complete, the girls chose to rest their sore feet at they ate lunch. 

“So, what will you do when you get back to America?” Jirou asked Calliope as they sipped their drinks under the shade of a parasol. 

“Well, my apprenticeship with the Skelebros is the ending soon and I’ll be able to become an official member of their team.” 

“That’s so cool!” Ochako chirped. 

“I’ll probably look into finding my own place too-“ Calliope began, but was cut off by Mina who leant over the table towards her. 

“Wait!” She blurted, almost knocking over Jirou’s drink. 

“You live with the Skelebros back in America?” 

Calliope nodded. 

“Wow. What’s it like living with two guys full time?” 

Calliope shrugged. Perhaps the teenage girls were fishing for something juicy but Calliope had nothing to offer of the sort. 

“Surprisingly easy.” She stated.

“The brothers bicker on occasion which is quite amusing. But other than that, living with Sans and ‘The Great Papyrus’ has been nothing but good food and bad laughs.” 

Mina and Hagakure looked particularly deflated by the lack of gossip. So, they initiated a new tactic. 

“Speaking of Sans...” Mina cooed, toying with her straw. 

Jirou rolled her eyes expectedly. 

“How did dinner go with him the other night?” 

“Oo yeah! Where did he take you?” Hagakure asked excitedly. 

Calliope chuckled. 

“Nowhere fancy. Honestly girls...” she shook her head and smiled as Mina pouted. 

“We’re not dating.”

Hagakure huffed and her floating vest fell back against her chair. 

“But you’d make such a cute couple.” 

Yaoyorozu hummed as she stirred the ice in her glass with a straw. 

“I imagine having a relationship with your teammate, especially in a team of three people, could make things quite awkward.” 

Calliope nodded and tried not to show her sadness. That was exactly the reason why she and Sam had never really pursued a proper romance, despite their ever increasing feelings for one another. Though Russ often joked about their obvious want for one another, Calliope couldn’t help but wonder how the younger sibling would actually feel if his two teammates started officially dating. 

“I’m sure Papyrus would understand, wouldn’t he?” Ochako commented in a hopeful tone. Forever the optimist. 

“Surely he’d be happy for you both?” 

Jirou smirked and added, “he didn’t seem phased when he had to watch you kiss Sans that time you stopped him from using his GasterBlaster on Bakugo.” 

The girls nodded, giggling in agreement. 

“He was purely acting professional.” Calliope insisted. 

“But that’s not the first time he’s seen you two kiss, it is?” Mina teased and Calliope’s eyes widened beneath her visor. 

“What are you talking about?” She spluttered. “What has Russ told you?” 

Jirou looked uncomfortable by the amount of gossip she was being subjected to. She pursed her lips as she watched Hagakure and Mina relish in Calliope’s timid surprise. 

“Papyrus may or may not have let slip that he’d caught you and his brother all cosied up together on multiple occasions.”

Mina flashed her teeth in impish delight from across the table. 

Calliope inwardly cursed the younger sibling. So much for him being the more professional one...

“Yes well...” was all she could manage. 

Mina was now chewing greedily on her straw. Her prey was on the back foot. She went in for the kill.

“So, are you in love with Sans or not?” She asked, her eyes shining bright and her voice a playful sing-song. 

Jirou finally chose to cut in. 

“C’mon Mina! It’s none of our business!” 

Yaoyorozu nodded in agreement but her eyes looked just as curious as Mina and Ochako’s as they remained fixed on Calliope’s flushed face. 

“Like I said before...” she began slowly, her fingers toying with a paper napkin. 

“Sam and I are just very close.”

But when she remembered his bare, broad shoulders and strong, scarred chest her fingers began to shred the napkin as quickly as her heart began to hammer. 

“Nu uh!” Mina sang gleefully as the breeze snatched away the torn paper from Calliope’s hands. 

“Someone’s in love!”


	14. To Dance, To Remember

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Note from my sis: Just so y’all know, I’m not trying to push any ships from the anime! I just thought I’d have some fun with the characters and create some wholesome content before the drama that’s to come! But, if you do have any ships, let me know in the comments! And thanks again for reading!

Later that evening, after helping the boys hook up the speakers and arrange the furniture in the courtyard, Russ and Sans returned to their room to get ready for their farewell party. 

The courtyard had looked wonderful when they’d left. They had stationed tables filled with drinks and snacks around a makeshift dance floor. Twinkling lights hung above while ribbons and glistening streamers swayed lightly in the breeze. Jirou had left Kaminari with a playlist for the night, which he tested over the speakers Bakugo had helped carry. The music carried well across the quaint setting and Aoyama praised the overall effect to be ‘magnifique.’ The girls were bound to be pleased. 

“The kids sure are excited about tonight.” Russ stated as he emerged from the bathroom. Though he’d showered well after his older brother, he re-entered the room to find that Sam was still slouched in his towel in one of the arm chairs. The navy suit he would be wearing was still hung up by his bed. 

“Heh. Yeah. It’s like they can’t wait to get rid of us.” Sam joked. But both of them knew that not to be true. Many of the students had mentioned just how much they’d miss them once they left. Phone numbers and email addresses had been exchanged and promises to remain in touch had been made. 

“Do you know if Calli’s back?” Russ asked as he towel dried his hair. 

Sam nodded and flashed Russ his phone screen. “She just text me. She’s getting ready now and told us not to wait for her.” 

“She plans to arrive fashionably late, hm?” Russ smiled, running a comb through his hair. Sam’s had dried in its usually messy manner. 

“No doubt,” the older sibling grinned, getting to his feet and stretching. 

“Guess I’ll put on this damn monkey-suit then...” he sighed, holding the 3 piece suit Russ had picked out for him back in America. The younger brother had insisted Sam have some type of formal wear in his closet. But, due to the fact Sam avoided every interview and press conference that had involve him so far, the attire had been left unused for months. This would actually be the first time he was going to wear it. 

“And try doing something with your hair,” Russ urged as Sam slipped past him to the bathroom. 

“Yeah yeah...” he heard him mumble as he closed the door behind him. 

As his older brother got ready in the bathroom, Russ laid his own outfit out on his bed. His suit was a deep maroon with a cherry red tie. 

He had just slipped into his blazer and was dabbing cologne at his neck when Sam re-emerged from the bathroom. Though it was odd to see his brother in fitted formal wear,as opposed to the oversized clothes he usually wore, Russ thought hid older sibling scrubbed up quite well. Even if he still hadn’t done anything to his hair. At least he wasn’t wearing that damn beanie hat. 

“Not bad, Sam.” Russ complimented as he watched his brother tug at his sky-blue tie. Calliope had helped Russ choose it out for him, saying that it would compliment Sam’s light eyes. 

The older Skelebro grumbled a thanks as he opted to undo the top button of his shirt. Russ rolled his eyes as he watched Sam fuss over his reflection. 

Finally succumbing to the restraints of formal attire, Sam turned to look at his younger sibling, who was running a styling wax through his hair. 

“Looking good, bro.” Sam smiled. He ducked out the way when Russ made to reach for him, no doubt to try and fix his hair. 

“Absolutely not,” he laughed as he weaved under his brother’s arm. 

“Just let me sort the back out!” Russ tutted.

“Nope.” 

When the Skelebros arrived in the courtyard after Russ finally gave up chasing his older sibling around the room, they were greeted by Iida and Yaoyorozu. 

The two class reps had been the first to arrive to make sure the final preparations had been made. The sweet smell of punch and scented candles filled the air. Jirou had chosen chill EDM to play for the first half of the evening and the melodic bass carried easily over the gentle rustle of the trees overhead. 

“Welcome!” Iida greeted, dressed in a shirt and bow tie. He handed the brothers a drink each. The first sip revealed that they were non alcoholic. 

“Heya,” returned Sam before adding, “don’t you look lovely, Yaoyorozu.” 

The dark haired girl flushed almost the same colour as her dress, especially when Russ seconded the compliment. 

“The others will be here shortly,” she breathed, stroking a lock of her dark hair behind her ear and avoiding Russ’ warm eyes as if they were Calliope’s. 

After a short conversation with the class reps, an enthusiastic voice cut through the tranquility. 

“Hey guys! Whoa this place looks awesome, great job everyone!” Ochako skipped towards them, followed by the rest of Class 1A who were all wearing their party attire. 

Ochako looked quite lovely in her borrowed pink dress. Deku’s eyes seemed to follow her everywhere as she circled the courtyard praising the boys’ eye for detail. 

Jirou and Tsu nodded in agreement, looking equally pretty in their chosen outfits. Jirou had styled the simple red dress she’d borrowed from Yaoyorozu with a leather jacket and biker boots. One of the girls had convinced her to wear lipstick. Tsu wore an empire-lined number in mint green. Lilies decorated her hair that she’d styled in a twisting up-do. 

“Not too shabby, huh?” Grinned Sero as the girls admired all their hard work. He helped himself to some punch and already managed to splash his white shirt with the pink liquid. “Aw man!” 

The class broke off into small groups, some already taking to the dance floor while others milled around by the tables. 

“Where’s Calli?” Sam asked, his blue-eyes scanning the many faces around them. It was then that Yaoyorozu gasped loudly making Iida almost spill his drink. 

“Oh no! I almost forgot!” And she thrust her own drink into Iida’s free hand and took off towards the dorms. 

“Okay then...” Iida mumbled, exchanging glances with the Skelebros who shared his look of bemusement. 

Before Sam and Russ could question their teammate’s absence further, a voice called out to them. 

“Hey Papyrus! Sans! Come dance with us!” 

It was Mina and Ochako. They waved to them from the other side of the dance floor, while the boys in the class watched cautiously from the sidelines. 

Sam grunted a laugh. “I don’t think so, ladies. But I’m sure my brother will be more than happy to!” 

And before Russ could refuse, Mina and Hagakure had already dragged him under the disco ball. 

“C’mon then! Oh Great Papyrus! Show us your best moves!” Mina challenged, moving her shoulders in time with the music. The other girls yelled encouragingly as Russ sighed. 

“Fine. But I’m only going to make all you young ladies look bad!” 

And when Russ started throwing his limbs around awkwardly, though with ample amounts of enthusiasm, Sam had almost choked on his drink. There were two things Russ wasn’t granted at birth; the ability to conjure GasterBlasters and rhythm. 

Once he ended the painful routine with a theatrical pose, the girls could only blink. 

“Stunned to silence, as expected.” Russ smiled, proud as the punch that had choked his brother. 

But when Sam chanced another glance at the group, he couldn’t help but smile at what he saw. Despite it’s hilarity and clear lack of technique, the girls were now all copying Russ’ terrible dance moves. 

“That’s adorable,” came a voice beside him. Sam would have jumped had he not been so used to Calliope’s knack for sneaking up on him. But when he turned to face her, his heart then did miss a beat. 

“Look at what Yaoyorozu made for me! Isn’t it beautiful?” She motioned towards the ornate, golden veil that covered her eyes. It was clearly made to match her dress. It was fabricated from some sort of metal, but resembled fine lace. There must have been some kind of visor concealed beneath it because, though her face was turned to his, her quirk did not take effect on him. Although, for a moment, it felt like it had. Once he finally found his voice, he simply responded with a somewhat strained, “Yeah, beautiful.” 

She smiled at him with lips painted in a shimmering gloss. His eyes dropped to them instinctively. Clearing his throat, he regained his composure. 

“Well, just look at you!” He grinned, taking her by the hand and twirling her beneath his arm. Luckily, she wasn’t wearing killer heels. She was already taller than him without them. Still, she had to duck slightly as she spun, maintaining elegance all the while. Her dress was backless and he was momentarily stunned again as he glimpsed her bronzed skin. The scales that followed the slope of her spine caught the light as she twirled. When her face turned back to his, she was laughing. Sam realised he’d never seen anything more beautiful in his life. 

He thought to tell her but she spoke first. 

“You’re not so bad yourself! She complimented, her hands smoothing the shoulders of his blazer. 

“All suited and booted. I never thought I’d see the day.” 

Sam shrugged, “Russ insisted.”

They both returned their eyes to the dance floor, where Mina and the girls were still laughing with Russ. 

Ochako spotted Calliope from across the room and beckoned her over. 

“Calli! Come dance with us!” 

Laughing, she flashed Sam one last smile. 

He declined her offer to join them and watched as she rushed over to the giggling group of girls. He heard them all exchange compliments and watched as Calliope and Russ embraced. 

“You look beautiful, Calli!” He heard his brother proclaim with ease. Sam immediately regretted not being the first one to tell her. And he couldn’t help but feel his heart sink as he watched her beam at the compliment he hadn’t given her. 

Heaving a sigh, Sam tore his eyes away from the group as they lapsed into another playful dance routine. He drained the last of his drink and sought out a figure hunched over in the gloom. 

“Bakugo,” he nodded in greeting, dropping into the chair next to the grumpy faced teen. 

“Sans...” He said back, his eyes scanning the party with discontent. 

“Not joining in?” Sam asked, motioning towards the dance floor where some of the boys had now joined. 

Kaminari was dancing close to Jirou while Sero and Kirishima sang along to the lyrics, slightly off key. Deku was stood talking to Ochako who kept glancing at him expectantly. Sam could tell the poor girl was waiting for him to ask her to dance. She fiddled with the hem of her rose-coloured dress while he babbled away obliviously. 

“Hell no,” Bakugo grunted. Sam expected nothing less. 

“Say...” the older male began, idly picking at the cuff of his blazer, “you should come and visit us in America sometime.” 

Bakugo turned his squinting eyes towards him, his chin resting on a fist. 

“I’ll take you hiking again.” Sam smirked. 

The teenager scoffed, but his lip twitched when he replied, “so long as I hold the compass.” 

Sam laughed. Was that a joke? Who would have thought it?

“Fine. But leave the fishing to me.” 

And at that, Bakugo did smile. 

Part way through the evening, Aizawa surprised everyone by showing up accompanied by some of the other UA teachers, including All Might. 

“We heard there was a party! How come we weren’t invited?” He bellowed in his manly voice before promptly returning to his skinnier self. 

Sans and Papyrus greeted the fellow America Hero with wide smiles as they shook his hand. Present Mic joked that, the now skinny, All Might looked like he could be the third member of the Skelebros. All Might simply chuckled. 

After some more teasing, Present Mic then declared that he would be taking over as DJ. The songs immediately became louder and more upbeat. And if that didn’t liven up the party, Midnight’s outrageously revealing gown sure did. She swanned over to the brothers and snatched them away from All Might, her cleavage almost swallowing the shorter Sans as she insisted they dance with her. Mineta had almost lost his mind when he watched Sans dislodge himself from Midnight’s bosom and hand her over to his taller brother. It seemed all the girls would dance with Papyrus tonight. 

“Don’t think I’m not coming back for you!” The voluptuous woman called back to Sam as she pulled a flustered Russ away by the arm. 

“I want to see that impressive GasterBlaster of yours by the end of the night.” 

She winked at him. The double entendre did not go unnoticed. 

As Sam stalked over to the punch bowl to fetch himself a much needed drink, a hand clasped his shoulder. He immediately feared the flirtatious teacher had come back to claim a dance from him after all. When he turned around with his excuses prepped, he was more than relieved to see Calliope standing there. Some of her hair had come loose from her coiled up-do. The strands graced her bare shoulders and he resisted the urge to do the same. 

“Having Russ take on all the responsibility again, I see?” She teased, jerking her head towards were Midnight lead a flushed looking Russ around the dance floor. Her barely covered chest was pressed up tightly against his. Calliope chuckled at the sight of him struggling to keep his eyes from looking down. 

Sans grunted a laugh. “I thought she was going to eat me alive.” 

“She sure looked like she was,” Calliope cheekily replied. 

Sam grinned his lazy grin as he sipped his drink. 

“You’ll protect me, won’t you Calli” he asked in mock pleading. 

She turned her face towards him and he felt her eyes regard him from beneath their golden veil. 

“Don’t I always?” She smirked. 

And he remembered how well they fought together in battle. How well their movements synced, how she used her quirk to hold enemies at a distance while he used his own to take them down with ease. Though he and Russ were brothers and had fought together long before Calli came to join them, their fighting styles differed greatly. But Calliope’s ability to adapt and overcome meant she could act as their support and did so seamlessly. 

Though Sam was used to seeing her in her skin tight hero suit, there was something about the way the satin gown draped over his teammate’s body that made his eyes wander more than they had ever done before. 

Suddenly aware of his actions, he turned away and was thankful she hadn’t seen him staring. She was too busy watching Deku, who still hadn’t asked Ochako to dance. The young girl was sat slightly apart from where Deku was chatting with All Might. Though it seemed she was politely listening to their conversation, her eyes trained on the boys and girls on the dance floor. Present Mic had strung one upbeat track along with the next for the best part of an hour. 

“Someone should tell him,” Calliope said with a shake of her head. And Sam knew what was coming next even before she turned to face him. 

“You go. Ochako’s going to sit and wait all night otherwise.” 

Sam sighed into his glass. Though he was eager to spend more time with Calli now that he had finally gotten the chance, he did pity the sight of the pouting Ochako across the room. 

“Alright,” he answered, placing his glass down. 

“But if Midnight gets her claws into me before I get there, you gotta promise to come rescue me.” 

Calliope laughed in agreement as Sam strode over to where Deku sat. Midnight was far too busy flirting with Russ to notice Sam cross the dance floor. 

All Might had luckily gone to speak with a forever gloomy-faced Bakugo, leaving Sam to take his empty seat. Ochako was still watching Kaminari and Jirou dance when Sam leaned over to Deku and whispered, “you gonna pluck up the courage some time tonight kid, or what?”

When Deku tried to act coy, Sam only smirked. 

“C’mon, kid. She’s been waiting for the past three hours.” 

Deku’s freckled face immediately turned pink and his hands balled themselves into fists. 

“What shall I say?” The timid boy whispered back, his eyes flitting between Ochako and the floor. 

“Just ask her if she wants to dance.” 

Deku blinked nervously and remained as rigid as a statue. At one point, Sam even looked up to see if Calliope was using her quirk on him. 

But she simply watched them from across the room and shook her head as Sam shrugged at her. 

Then, he had an idea. One that would hopefully kill two birds with one stone. 

“Here, follow my lead.” And after an encouraging pat on the back, Sam stood up and made his way back to Calliope as Deku’s eyes followed him. 

“What are you doing?” Calliope hissed as she watched Sam cross the dance floor. 

“He still hasn’t asked her!” 

Sam put a finger to his lips then subtly gestured towards the green-haired boy who continued to watch them.

And when Sam held out his left hand towards her, Calliope immediately caught on and fought back the urge to laugh. 

He spoke loudly so that his voice could be heard above the sound of the music when he asked, “Calli, my dear. May I have this next dance?” 

His grin was contagious. That, and his theatrically formal request, had Calliope smiling from ear to ear. 

She chose to continue the exaggerated display of etiquette and gave a low curtesy before taking his outstretched hand. 

It seemed that Deku was not the only one watching Sam and Calliope, as Present Mic then wolf-whistled over the speakers. 

“I see we’re in need of a change of mood here, ladies and gentlemen!” He called, as Sam lead Calliope to the dance floor. 

Mina and Hagakure’s delighted squeals could be heard as the music shifted into a slow ballad and Sam drew Calliope’s body close to his. 

“I’m not sure your little demonstration worked,” she whispered as his hand rested lightly against the small of her back. Her skin felt surprisingly cool to the touch beneath his fingers. The scales that decorated her skin were delightfully smooth. 

Sam shrugged as he guided her gracefully around the dance floor, vaguely aware that no one else was dancing. The ballad had clearly scared off the boys and girls who were previously there. 

“Too bad, I guess.” And he resisted the urge to kiss her then and there. 

Against all odds, however, Deku’s shaking voice sounded from somewhere behind them. 

“Uraraka!” He said suddenly, his chair scraping the floor loudly as he got to his feet. 

“Will you dance with me, please?” 

It sounded more like a plea than a polite request, but Ochako didn’t seem too bothered. Though she blushed deeply, she didn’t refuse his trembling hand. 

“Well well...” Calliope murmured, her breath warm against Sam’s cheek. “Looks like you’re a good teacher after-all.” 

Russ was mercifully released by Midnight once the ballad had started. The curvaceous woman stated she preferred songs with more spice. With a final wink, she had turned on a heel and sauntered over to a dosing Aizawa. Another unsuspecting male ripe for the taking. Sam had narrowly dodged the big-breasted-bullet by leading Calliope onto the dance floor. Though Midnight was a flirt, she clearly wasn’t a bunny boiler. She left the couple to dance in peace. 

Russ took a seat as he watched more students pluck up the courage to face the slow dance. Kaminari and Jirou were the next couple who took to the floor. 

Jirou looked ridiculously uncomfortable but was smiling nonetheless as a beaming Kaminari swayed her this way and that. Mina had dragged a reluctant Kirishima away from his conversation with Bakugo and together they danced next to them. Mina barked at her clumsy partner’s lack of coordination and ended up leading him around the room while he struggled to keep in step. 

Aizawa remained unmovable despite Midnight’s prodding so instead she lead All Might by the hand and chose to dance with him, despite the songs lack of spice. 

Russ smiled as he watched the dance floor slowly fill up and his eyes were instinctively drawn towards his two teammates. 

Calliope was resting her forehead against Sam’s and they were whispering softly to one another. Russ noticed how his brother’s thumb gently stroked the skin of her back as they swayed gently to the music. The slight height difference between them was rather sweet. Russ and Calliope often teased Sam for being the shortest in the group, despite him being the oldest. The forever laidback Sam never cared though, neither then nor now, as Russ watched him whisper something to Calliope that made her smile. 

Russ shook his head as he watched them and pondered when they’d stop beating around the bush and make themselves official. But part of him knew deep down that the reason they chose not to start up a relationship was because they chose to put the dynamic of the team first. Russ couldn’t help but feel a little guilty about this. He was the third wheel after all. 

Disregarding this thought, he averted his eyes from the intimate scene and instead let his gaze fall upon his former one-to-one student.

Todoroki was sat next to a troubled-looking Yaoyorozu. Another young couple in need of prompting...

Russ raised his hand and waved to get his attention. The teenager raised his two-toned head and blinked at him. Russ quirked his brows and jerked his head towards Yaoyorozu. When the boy continued to stare blankly, Russ resorted to mouthing “like we practiced!” 

Todoroki heaved a sigh and Russ braced himself as he watched him turn towards the dark-haired girl. His shoulders looked ridiculously stiff. 

“Yaoyorozu. You look upset. Would it please you to take a dance with me?” His jarringly jovial tone clashed with his rigid posture. 

Russ sighed and fought back the urge to facepalm. 

Yaoyorozu looked unsurprisingly taken-aback. 

“Oh-I...” she began, shuffling in her seat. She then seemed to remember something and realisation dawned on her features.

“Are you trying to talk like Papyrus again?” She asked through a smile. 

Russ couldn’t help but feel slightly insulted that she recognised that poor display of enthusiasm as a direct impression of him. 

Todoroki lowered his eyes as he nodded. 

“I did terribly again, didn’t I?”

Yaoyorozu laughed softly behind her hand. 

“Well, if it was your intention to make me laugh, then no!”

His posture relaxed at her words. 

“It wasn’t. It was to ask you to dance but if making you laugh was enou-“ But Yaoyorozu had boldly taken his hand before he could finish, making that another couple to add to the dance floor. 

It wasn’t quite how Russ had imagined it to go, but he considered that a win nevertheless. 

Mineta could be heard groaning to Sero about how he had wanted to dance with Yaoyorozu. When the tape-wielding student had suggested he go and ask Tsu to dance instead, the frog-girl had told him she already had a dance partner. Russ couldn’t help but chuckle to himself when he watched her lead Hagakure onto the dance floor, leaving a forlorn looking Mineta behind. 

When the ballads finally ended, Aizawa declared that the party was due to come to an end. The students used this opportunity to relish the last few, upbeat tunes Present Mic played to see the event out. Mina had challenged Sam to a dance battle, who gladly accepted so that he could avoid anymore of Midnight’s ‘GasterBlaster’ innuendos. The pink-haired girl was delighted to find that he could keep up with her moves as the two of them bopped along to a hip hop beat. Ochako and Deku has grown less sheepish around one another since the slow dance and twirled each other around beneath the disco ball with smiles on their faces. 

The entire Class of 1A seemed to be enjoying the last hour of the party so much so that they had all forgotten that, by this time tomorrow, all three of their American guests would be on the plane home. 

Russ and Calliope hadn’t forgotten though, as they sat and watched the many laughing faces before them. They sat side by side in a shadowy space beneath a tree. Calliope had taken off her shoes and was resting her head on Russ’ shoulder. She was wearing Sam’s blazer after he had taken it off before throwing down with Mina. 

“I’m going to miss them all...” she said softly, her eyes heavy behind the eyewear Yaoyorozu had so kindly made for her. She felt Russ nod in agreement. He too must have grown sleepy as he yawned through his next sentence. 

“We can always come and visit them.”

But both he and Calliope knew that, once they were back in America, the chances of them finding more time to visit Japan was unlikely. 

“Tomorrow morning, I’ll head into the city to buy us some supplies for the journey home.” Calliope informed him. 

And had any of them known what would happen that very next day, the snacks and drinks Calliope had planned to get would have been left well alone on the shop shelves...


	15. The Hero Medusa

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here comes the angst...

The next morning was begrudgingly spent clearing up the courtyard. 

“What a way to spend a Sunday...” Sero groaned as he coiled up the fairy lights and stuffed them unceremoniously into a box. 

“Ah well...” Kaminari shrugged, “it was worth it. Last night was a total blast!”

Mina nodded in agreement but her eyes betrayed her sadness. 

“I can’t believe they’re leaving today,” she pouted, throwing the plastic cups she’d collected from the tables into the recycling. 

Deku sighed as he helped Bakugo heave the speakers across the courtyard. 

“Papyrus said they’d all come say goodbye once Calliope get backs from the store.” 

Bakugo hadn’t said a word all morning. Instead he kept himself focused on the task of returning the courtyard back to normal. His classmate’s sad grumblings were beginning to grate his nerves but he held his tongue. 

Between them, the students of Class 1A soon had every table, every chair, every streamer, every banner and every speaker put away. 

Aizawa came along to check their progress and dismissed them shortly after. 

As they wandered back to their dorm building, they saw a tall figure sprinting towards them. 

“Who’s that?” Asked Deku, squinting at the approaching person. 

It was Yaoyorozu, who had returned to the dorm earlier in order to take a phone call. She looked distressed as she skidded to a halt before them with her phone clutched to her chest. 

“Did you see the news?” She panted, her eyes wide and her brow covered in a thin layer of sweat. 

They shook their heads as Todoroki asked, “why? Has something happened to your family?” He was referring to the phone call she had taken. 

But she shook her head, her hair whipping about her shoulders wildly. 

“No! I saw it on the T.V whilst speaking to mother! Come quick!” 

They exchanged glances with one another as Yaoyorozu turned and ran back towards their dorm. They hastily followed. 

After piling through the door to the common area, they were met with a stony faced Iida who was watching the T.V screen in a grave silence. 

Flashing before them were live images of a high-street not too far from campus. The store-lined street was empty, albeit from one reporter who stood in the foreground of a disturbing backdrop. 

“...what appears to have been some sort of villain attack that took place earlier this morning.” 

Bakugo’s breath caught and his fists clenched. Another attack so close to their school? The reporter continued. 

“The multiple victims were targeted by, what police suspect to be, a lone criminal.” 

Behind them, the common room door opened and in walked in Sans and Papyrus who’s faces showed only mild concern. 

“Heya,” Sans called casually. 

Bakugo glanced at them. Had they heard the news? 

“You guys haven’t seen Calli, have you? She was meant to be back a while ago.” 

Bakugo suspected they were oblivious. And when Papyrus’ eyes fell on the T.V screen they were all gathered around, his suspicions were confirmed. 

“Sam...” Papyrus spoke, his voice uncharacteristically small. He grabbed his older brother’s shoulder, prompting him to follow his gaze towards the T.V. 

The screen had changed and now showed a series of images of the many victims of the attack. Unlike some villain attacks, where the images could not be shown due to gore, these images contained nothing of the sort. However, the sight of them remained eerily disturbing. Instead of wounded people, the pictures on screen revealed shots of bodies that had be turned completely to stone. Two elderly men sat on a bench, a woman holding her child’s hand, a man with his shopping...

“...undoubtedly the result of the villain’s quirk.” Stated the reporter as the images of the victims continued to show on screen. 

“No...” Bakugo heard Sans breathe, his eyes suddenly wide with fear. 

“No, no, no!” His words became increasingly louder. It was strange to hear his usually calm voice break in such a way. 

“Calli!” Was his final breath before he tore from Papyrus’ attempt to hold him and bolted out the door. 

“What about Calli?” Squeaked a troubled-looking Ochako. 

But she needn’t have asked as the next image on screen sent a wave of despair throughout the room. 

On screen, displayed as one of the victims of the attack, was Calliope. She was immediately recognisable, despite her entire body being a ghostly grey, by her long hair and sharp nails that seemingly dug into the stone wall of the fountain she was slumped on. She wasn’t wearing her visor as her stony face peered into the water with a look of anguish dashed across her frozen features. 

Papyrus felt his knees buckle and he reached out instinctively for the nearest body to steady him. His hand grasped Todoroki’s shoulder as the teenager’s horrified face turned to his, along with every other person’s in the room. 

“Take me to her...” was all he could manage and a handful of the class members immediately obliged. 

Iida had attempted to stop them and had managed to corral more than half the class. 

Bakugo, Kirishima, Deku, Mina and Ochako managed to slip by however and were now sprinting towards the fountain Mina had spied Sans and Calliope sat at all those weeks ago. Papyrus followed behind, his eyes wild and his breathing ragged. 

They skidded to a halt at their destination to find a distressed Sans already there. Bakugo was stunned, along with the other UA students, to find the usually calm and collected brother yelling wildly at the police officers who tried to restrain him. 

“I’m sorry, sir! But this is an active crime scene! We cannot let you past this line.”

The group watched with mouths agape as Sans drew back and raised his left hand. It glowed like a gas fire as his low, unnervingly unfamiliar voice drawled dangerously, “Don’t you idiots know who I am?” 

The officers collective cries rang out as two dragon-like skulls materialised at his sides. When the beasts’ mouths opened, their eyes blazing azure, the men stumbled backwards into the tape that separated Sans from Calliope. It snapped as they stumbled and fell, Sans advancing with his beasts on either side. 

Papyrus cursed as he broke from the group. He approached the officers who fumbled for their radios. 

“It’s okay!” Papyrus called, attempting to muster some heroic authority to his voice. 

“We’re the Skelebros from America. That’s our teammate!” 

The police looked perplexed but Papyrus didn’t wait to see if they acknowledged his identity. Instead, he stepped over the torn tape and cautiously made his way over to his brother. 

Bakugo and the other students watched from a short distance. The scene was pitiful. 

Sans had crumbled at the sight of Calliope. He had reached out to her but the moment his fingers touched her cold, stone shoulder, his knees had given way. Weeping quietly, he had hauled himself onto the fountain wall and gently placed his hands on either side of Calliope’s unmoving face. 

His pleas cut through the eerily still morning air like a bitter wind. 

“Calli...” he croaked, his desperate hands willing her to respond as they caressed her cold, hard cheeks. 

“Calli, please look at me,” he begged. 

Bakugo heard Mina and Ochako whimper beside him as they watched Sans’ pleas gradually become more frantic. He had feebly tried to turn his teammate’s face towards his, but the statue remained unmovable. 

“Look at me, Calli!” He called, his voice breaking. 

But she couldn’t. 

His cry of anguish ran out as he clumsily crawled into the fountain to face her. Though he could now look at her directly, his clothes soaked to the skin as he knelt in the water her unseeing eyes peered into, she still did not respond to his pleas. 

“Sam...” Papyrus called softly, one hand on Calliope’s shoulder and the other placed gently over his brother’s as he stroked her cheek. 

“She can’t hear you.” His voice broke as he said this. 

The two UA girls were crying now. Even Kirishima and Deku’s eyes shimmered slightly beneath the early morning sun. 

More people were beginning to gather, a small crowd now forming around the tragic scene. Voices began to mutter. 

“What happened?” 

“Who are they?”

“I think it’s those heroes from America.”

“The ones that came to teach at UA?”

Bakugo flexed his fingers. His hands had been so tightly balled into fists that his digits had seized up. 

Papyrus now sat on the wall next to Calliope’s statue, his arms around her hauntingly still shoulders and his brother’s quaking ones. Sans’ sobs echoed across the square. Even the two skulls that watched over the three teammates like sentinels seemed to hang their beastly heads. 

“Who could have done this?” Kirishima croaked. 

Deku seemed to be racking his brains but Bakugo had his own suspicions. 

Without a word to the others, he turned to leave. 

“Wait, man!” Kirishima called, catching up to him after he had disappeared into the growing crowd. 

“Where are you going?” 

Bakugo debated whether or not to share his hunch with his classmate but ultimately decided against it. 

“Stay with the others,” he ordered gruffly. 

“And let me know if any other heroes or villains show up.”

He didn’t pause to give Kirishima time to respond. Turning quickly, he slipped into the mass of people and weaved in and out of their bodies to make sure he wasn’t followed. The red-haired teen had developed the habit of taking after him regardless of Bakugo’s wishes over the course of their friendship. 

Deku had mentioned way back during one of their first lessons with the trio that Calliope was also referred to as the hero Medusa. Though it meant little to him at the time, the name now rang alarms bells. Greek mythology wasn’t a particular interest of his, but Bakugo had come across the name Medusa on multiple occasions. 

Once the police found out who the person by the fountain was, the search for the villain would come a close. The only question then would be; what had caused Calliope’s quirk to react like that? 

As he followed the trail of stone statues down the high street, Bakugo remembered how Sans and Papyrus had immediately reacted to the report. Calliope’s body hadn’t even shown on screen yet, yet the brothers knew she had been involved just from seeing the images of her victims. Had this happened before? 

He retraced the steps Calliope had taken. He had already passed 8 statues. The expressions on their frozen faces ranged from shock to curiosity. They had clearly turned to stone in an instant, just like Calliope had done upon seeing her own reflection in the water. Bakugo had remembered overhearing the girls quiz Calliope about her quirk. She had told them that it didn’t work on her. Yet...

He thought back to the way Sans and Papyrus had wept over her petrified statue. Sans’ anguished sobs still rang in his ears as he turned a corner. 

The statues had come to an end, or so Bakugo thought, as he stared down the empty high street. It seemed everyone had gone to investigate the scene by the fountain. As his eyes scanned the abandoned area, something glinted in the distance, snagging his attention and drawing him closer. It was Calliope’s visor. Frowning, Bakugo stooped to pick it up. There was a clear crack down the middle where it must have broken as it hit the floor. How Calliope had managed to lose it, however, soon became apparent after closer investigation. He had found the visor at the mouth of a narrow alley way among some overturned trash cans. There had clearly been some sort of a struggle. He kept his breath steady and his reflexes ready as he slowly dipped into the shadowy route of the stinking side alley. There were more signs of a struggle the further he went, scuff marks on the floor and he even glimpsed some blood splatters on the walls as they caught the light. Who’s blood remained a mystery, although the number of suspects grew as Bakugo’s eyes fell upon three silhouette’s crouched right at the back of the alley. 

For a moment he studied the peculiar scene with sheer confusion. But, as comprehension of what he was actually witnessing dawned on him, the teenager felt his rage build in the pit of his stomach. 

Before him were the petrified statues of Calliope’s attackers. They were positioned in a small circle, with their faces contorted into grotesque expressions. One statue held the pose of someone who had been previously holding something, or someone...Perhaps by the arms or the head. Beside him lay the discarded rag that had clearly been used to cover Calliope’s eyes. Had they known who she was? Crazed fan boys perhaps. They looked no older than her mentors, who were now crying tears into the fountain that their teammate now claimed as their final resting place. The other two statues had their hands on their belts, one had even managed to undo his, before Calliope had shaken the rag from her eyes. 

Bakugo pictured the scene in his mind, the thought of Calliope’s cries for help making him sick to the stomach. This is what must have triggered her quirk to react in such a way. He remembered how Sans had told him just how much she hated her quirk-

how it had only added to her loneliness growing up. How alone Calliope must have felt in this moment as she fought to defend her dignity. 

Bakugo gritted his teeth as he glared at the sneering faces of the scum before him. Not big time villains, but lowly criminals of the worst kind. The kind of scum society seemed to have forgotten about even since heroes and villains and their flashy quirks became the status quo. As his mind relayed all of this in a cloud of red, Bakugo’s own quirk began to spark at his finger tips. In a blazing instant, the three statues were reduced to nothing but ash. Bakugo spat on the ground before turning to leave. 

When he arrived back at the fountain, Mr Aizawa and All Might had joined the throng of people. They were talking quietly to the police while the small group of UA students stood near by. Deku and Kirishima were feebly trying to comfort Ochako and Mina who could seemingly no longer bare to look at Papyrus and Sans as they still clung to their teammate’s statue. In Bakugo’s absence, the brothers had covered Calliope’s mournful shoulders and anguished eyes. Sans’ wet jacket was draped over her while Papyrus had removed his scarf to mask her eyes. It was a tragic sight to behold. The three of them were meant to be on their way back home by now. 

Over the next few days, the Police spoke to the UA staff and both brothers about the nature of Calliope’s quirk. When they asked them if this had happened before, they both denied any knowledge of it. 

“It was clearly a unique incident triggered by, what could only have been, a traumatic experience.” Aizawa had stated during another interview in one of the schools unoccupied classrooms. And when Bakugo overheard the Police mention that they hadn’t found any sign of such a thing occurring, he had hesitated in the corridor. He considered telling them about his discovery of the three attackers in the alley way. But when he came face to face with Sans as the older male slid out of the door, he couldn’t bring himself to speak the words. 

The brothers chose to cancel their tickets home, stating that they simply wouldn’t leave Calli behind. The other statues had been moved to a safe house while their families hopefully awaited a reversal. Calliope’s statue remained unmovable due to the fact she had fusionend with the stone wall of the fountain. 

As the weeks drew on, the principal offered Sans and Papyrus to remain on campus for as long as they needed. The younger sibling dealt with his grief by throwing himself into his new job as full-time teacher at the school. Bakugo couldn’t help but be impressed at his ability to smile through his classes. Though, there were times when the students caught the sadness reflected in his eyes as he peered out the window towards the direction of Calli’s statue. 

Sans, on the other hand, become more and more withdrawn. His trademark grin had vanished and his eyes looked duller and even more tired than ever. Many of Class 1A’s students would pass by the fountain to see him sat next to Calli, who still wore his jacket and his brother’s scarf, with his head pressed lightly against her shoulder. The dark circles beneath his eyes and his sudden loss of weight made him look even more skeletal than normal. He hadn’t shaved in weeks and the dark stubble at his chin made him look far older than he was. 

Sometimes, the girls would sit with him. Sometimes, they would try to coax him to speak, other times Jirou would sing as she strummed her guitar. But more than often they would simply sit with him in silence. 

One time, when Ochako was bold enough to put her arm around him, he had sunk into her and wept quietly as the other girls looked on with watery eyes. When he had fallen asleep against her, Yaoyorozu had gone to fetch Papyrus who lifted his older brother into his arms and carried him back to campus. 

Bakugo had watched this unfold from a far. He waited til they were out of sight before walking over to the fountain with this hands on his pockets. The scarf around Calliope’s eyes had slipped down, leaving the silent statue to gaze sadly into the water below her, her long hair cascading around her. After a quick glance around, he reached out a tentative hand and lifted the scarf back over her eyes. Perhaps he would come back again tomorrow and return her visor to her. Or perhaps he would give it to the brothers and hope that they wouldn’t ask any questions. He considered these options as he made his way back campus, the sun setting behind him as he went.


	16. Sanctuary

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More angst...

“Papyrus...” Ochako softly called as she approached him at the end of a P.E lesson. 

“How are you getting on?” Her question was delicate, her eyes anxiously searching his face when he turned to her. 

“I’m keeping busy,” was all he could reply and he hoped he didn’t sound too blunt. 

It was the day after he and the girls had taken Sam back to campus after his breakdown by the fountain. 

After falling into a deep sleep, Russ had put his brother to bed and used the opportunity to take proper care of him. Since losing Calli, his older brother had neglected to eat, sleep and bathe. So, while his grief-stricken sibling slept for the first time in days, Russ carefully stripped him out of his sullied t-shirt and jogging bottoms and threw them straight in the laundry. His heart sunk at how thin his older brother looked. Though Sam had never been as lean as Russ, he had once boasted a strong upper body beneath his scar. But lack of food and physical activity had left his sibling looking almost frail. 

These past few weeks had been tough on them both, but losing Calli so suddenly had hit Sam the hardest. Though he never chose to admit it, Russ knew Sam had always been in love with Calliope. He thought back to how he had watched his two teammates dance together at the party. He had seen Sam whisper something to Calli that had made her smile. Had he finally told her? 

And then to lose her the very next day...

When Sam finally did awaken, Russ had made him take a shower while he fetched them both some food. They never ate in the canteen anymore. Facing people was too difficult. 

Russ laid out some fresh clothes and had been happy to see that his brother had finally shaved his face, though he had done a sloppy job and was cut in some places along his jaw. 

When Ochako then asked, “and Sans?” Papyrus hesitated. 

“He’s doing better.” And it wasn’t quite a lie. He was indeed doing better, even if that meant he was now eating at least once a day. 

Ochako seemed to relax at this news. 

“We all miss her...” the girl croaked. Papyrus hoped she wouldn’t cry. He wasn’t ready to shed his own tears in public again. But she remained strong, clenching her fists as she titled her head to look up at him. 

“But we’ll find a way to bring her back!” 

When she said this, he decided that he would have rather have seen her cry for these words were too cruel for him to hear. He knew there was little to no chance of reversing Calliope’s quirk. But he smiled down at Ochako’s hopeful face anyway. 

And just when the monotony of the days threatened to send Russ into a downward spiral to match his brother, a villain attack in the city ignited a new lease of live in the younger sibling. The Japanese heroes had put out a request calling for any available heroes in the city to come to their aid. Sam had simply turned off the radio once the broadcast was finished and returned to his small plate of food. Russ, however, had pushed to his feet and marched out the door. It’s what Calliope would have wanted. Though, relaying this to Sam would have been unwise. So, leaving his brother behind, Papyrus set out to fight alone. 

The villains were a gang of Anthropomorphic individuals who had been terrorising the city centre after a series of thefts. Mt. Lady and Woods were pleased to have Papyrus act as support, using his strong, bone-structures to protect any buildings and bystanders as they fought off the beastly villains. He was also used as a strong defence, erecting walls and shields to help them avoid injury. Papyrus’ interference didn’t go unnoticed however, and an infuriated villain with the face of a wolf singled him out. They fought hand to hand and Papyrus was almost knocked down on a few occasions. The wolf-man was strong and his sharp claws had managed to cut through his chest armour before Papyrus could take a swing. He stumbled backwards and took another blow, this time to the head. The villains claws ripped away Papyrus’ helmet and recognition flashed in the wolf’s eyes before Papyrus could restore his armour. 

“You!” The Wolf snarled menacingly, spittle dripping from its jaws. 

“You’re the one from the T.V...”

Papyrus cursed under his breath. The wolf continued, glee now shining in its orange eyes. 

“The American!” 

The wolf began to laugh, a mocking, nasty laugh. Papyrus gripped at his sword, dust swirling about him as he restored his skull-helmet. 

“Ah Yes! Now I remember! Your pretty-little friend made quite a nuisance of herself, didn’t she?”

Papyrus began to growl and took a sloppy swing towards the villain who was now cackling in delight. 

“Turning everyone to stone! How remarkable.”

Another swing, another miss. He couldn’t let him get under his skin. He had to remain focused. He had to ignore-

“It’s a shame she turned herself to stone. What a waste of a powerful quirk and a pretty face...”

This time Papyrus made sure he wouldn’t miss. The sharp edge of his bone-made sword cut through the Wolf’s shoulder. He roared in pain and jumped backwards. His strong legs propelled him onto a low rooftop where he snarled down at an enraged Papyrus. 

No, he couldn’t lose his cool. He had to keep a level head. 

“Ha!” The villain spat, clutching at his wound. Sadly, it was only shallow. 

Papyrus gritted his teeth. His fighting was poor. He needed to concentrate but...

“Perhaps I’ll go give her a visit, hmm?” The wolf sneered. 

Papyrus’ eyes widened beneath his helmet, his sword almost falling from his fingertips. From somewhere in the distance, he heard Mt. Lady cry out victoriously. It sounded like she and Woods has bested the other gang members. The wolf looked momentarily outraged but, after casting another glance down at the shaken Papyrus, sought to immediately enact his revenge. 

Without even another mocking sneer, the wolf took off. He bounded at an alarmingly fast pace in the direction of the fountain. 

“Calli!” Papyrus cried, and immediately began his pursuit. With a wave of his hand, his heavy armour vanished in a swirl of dust and ash. But this wasn’t enough for him to catch up to the wolf’s speed. He waved his hand again and platform-sized bones shot up from the ground. He leapt from one to another, using them to create a shorter path to the fountain. But the wolf was still faster. Papyrus’ heart hammered painfully in his chest as panic rose to his throat. He had to reach Calli before the villain did. He thought of her mournful statue sat by the fountain all alone. His scarf hiding her crying eyes and his brother’s jacket covering her cold, stony shoulders...

With a final leap, he landed in the square where the fountain lay and was immediately hit by two emotions- shock and relief. For just ahead of him, blocking the path between the villain and Calliope, stood his older brother. His left eye blazed like a gas-fire and his left hand was a glowing blue fist.

“Sam,” Papyrus panted, eyeing his sibling’s dark expression apprehensively. Never in his life had he seen Sam look so sinister. Perhaps it was due to the fact he had lost the boyish roundness of his face, or that his usually lazy grin was replaced with an eerie snarl. His charming handsomeness had dissolved into a somewhat nightmarish appearance that Russ, only now, recognised in the cold light of day. 

“I see! So you’ve both come out to play, hm?” Leered the wolf, glancing from one brother to the next. The cocky edge to his voice had depleted slightly now that he was outnumbered two to one. 

“Don’t you dare come any closer...” Sans warned, his fingers flexing. His voice was no longer the low and lustrous tone Russ was so used to hearing. Instead, it was a cold rasp that cut through the air as sharply as the bones Sans sent hurtling towards the villain. They punctured the concrete where the wolf had been stood only seconds before leaping out of the way. 

“Why not?” The wolf leered, prowling with his eyes jumping from one brother to the next. 

“I just want to say hello to- what was her name again?”

A slice of a hand sent more speeding projectiles towards the villain. He dodged, but only just. Papyrus held his ground, ready to make his move once he found an opening. He couldn’t act too recklessly here, not with Calliope’s statue at risk. 

The villain cackled again. 

“Ah yes! Calli, right?” 

Sans visibly winced at the sound of her name. 

“Yes! Calli! I remember how you pleaded for her to look at you...”

The villain’s words seemed to have made Sans freeze up. His eyes were round and glistened with tears, the fire in his left eye had died down to nothing but a dull glow. 

More sinister laughter and a flex of fur-coated muscle. 

“Maybe I can make her move, hm?” He snarled and leapt towards a paralysed Sans. 

“No!” Roared Papyrus as he rushed forwards. He swung his sword just as the wolf’s body threatened to collide with Sam’s and the action caused the villain to alter his trajectory. He skidded across the concrete a few meters from the two brothers as they stood before their teammate’s stony body. Seeing his brother by his side caused Sans to snap out of his distressed trance. Papyrus heard him mutter his thanks. 

The wolf growled as he rose to full height. 

“Fine. If you don’t want to share...” 

And the brothers watched in disbelief as the beast’s fur began to stand on end, the hairs glowing orange as his muscles pulsed beneath them. 

“I’ll have to just take her for myself!”

The wolf’s jaws opened as fire began to swirl at the back of his throat. In a blink of an eye, it blasted a fireball towards them. It collided with a loud bang as it hit the wall of bones the brothers had created. They shattered on impact and showered them in ivory shards. More and more fireballs followed and, from behind their defences, the brothers could hear the beast advancing. 

“Sam!” Papyrus bellowed over the sound of the blasts. But his older sibling had already reacted. He had thrown his arms around Calliope’s statue and concealed them both beneath a protective sphere of bones. Once Papyrus knew they were both protected, he timed his next moves between blasts. Once the next fireball obliterated his wall, he burst through it towards their aggressor. It took the villain by surprise and he barely missed Papyrus’ swiping blade. But Papyrus kept on advancing, each swipe pushing the wolf further and further from Calliope and his brother. 

Just a little further. Gotta keep his eyes on me...

The wolf’s reflexes were fast. He evaded nearly every swing, the blade only just slicing away some his long fur here and there. But it didn’t matter. And just when the wolf’s movements began to slow, the sound Papyrus had been waiting for hummed loudly behind him. 

The wolf’s eyes darted towards it and his pupils dilated at what he saw. Floating meters above the fountain and the bony sphere that concealed Sans and Calliope, was the monstrous skull of dragon with its toothy mouth agape. The white hot ball of energy building in its jaws hummed loudly. And before the wolf could register what he was looking at, Papyrus erected walls along the entire perimeter of the square to contain the destructive blast that followed next. The GasterBlaster fired with a bang so loud that the surrounding shop windows shattered, even with Papyrus’ walls protecting them. The concrete underfoot cracked and blistered as the searing blast engulfed the villain. 

When the dust settled and the smoke cleared, all was still. Papyrus reopened his eyes and let down his walls as he approached the villain’s charred body. Sirens began to sound in the distance as the police approached the scene of the blast. Perhaps firing the GasterBlaster was a bit drastic, but in the moment the brothers’ combined fury had made it seem necessary. The villain was unconscious. At least they wouldn’t have to explain killing him to the law. Villains in this country were meant to be captured, not killed. 

Russ turned back to look at the fountain. Sans remained encased in his sphere of bones along with Calliope’s statue. After checking the villain was completely incapacitated, Papyrus turned to walk towards his older brother. Placing a hand softly against the walls of the sphere he gently called. 

“Sam?”

No reply. There was a chance the brother had passed out. Firing his ultimate weapon often sapped all the energy from him. However, on this occasion Russ knew that the battle hadn’t been that taxing. The two of them had fought longer and harder battles back home in America. His brother was simply ignoring him. 

“Sam. You can come out now. Calli’s safe.”

More silence, except for the whir of sirens. The police cars stopped at the edge of the square as armed officers spilt from their doors. They were accompanied by a normal sized Mt.Lady and her partner Woods. Russ overheard them explain the situation to the police who had now put the unconscious wolf villain in cuffs. 

“Are you okay?” Mt. Lady asked, her face frowning anxiously as she approached Russ. She eyed the strange scene in front of her. 

“Is that...” she began, motioning towards the sphere. 

Russ nodded slowly. 

“The villain threatened to harm Calliope. I couldn’t keep up with him.”

Mt.Lady’s face adopted a sympathetic expression and she placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. Due to the fact she herself worked with a partner, and potential love interest, she could empathise their pain.

“Luckily Sans was here. He protected her.” 

She squeezed his shoulder reassuringly. It was a gesture he was used to doing himself. 

“And that blast we saw?” Mt.Lady asked, her eyes scanning the broken glass and cracked concrete. 

“Sans’ ultimate move.” Russ confirmed. 

If she thought that the blast had been overkill, she didn’t mention it. Instead she just nodded sadly. 

“I’ll erm...” she glanced from Russ to the silent sphere, “leave you both to it. We’ll have some heroes come and repair the damage to the street later on.”

She thanked him for all his help before turning to join Woods who had been stood watching on the periphery. 

Russ turned back to where his brother remained enclosed in his self-made, spherical fortress. 

“Sam. I know you can hear me. It’s time to go.”

But Sam failed to respond once more. Heaving a breath, he placed his forehead against the wall of the sphere.

“Sam...” he tried again. This time, as he stood and waited for an answer, the sound of crying met his ears. His heart sank and the urged to break open the sphere and embrace his older sibling filled his entire being. Except for one small part of him that knew he should simply turn and leave. Which he did. 

When Aizawa greeted him in the corridors of UA later than evening, the steely eyed teacher had asked him about the villain attack. Russ explained in minimal detail. Aizawa’s next question was about the whereabouts of the older sibling. 

“Sam chose to stay behind with Calli.” Was all he said. 

The UA teacher had stared quietly but Russ refused to crumble. He knew that Aizawa was concerned about Sam’s deteriorating mental well-being. 

“He just needs time.” Russ insisted.

But Aizawa did not look convinced. 

The UA teacher had every right to be concerned. As well as everything that had happened with Calliope, a new villain had surfaced by the name of Overhaul. Russ was aware of the problems he was creating for UA but the principal had refused any help from him. Instead, the soft spoken mouse had urged him to focus on helping his older brother through his grieving process. 

“I can only imagine how hard this must be for the both of you...” The principal had said after inviting Russ to speak with him one afternoon. 

“Which is why you and Sans are both welcome to stay at UA for as long as you need. However, I must implore your to keep an eye on you sibling.” 

Russ had sighed, running a sweaty palm across his face. 

“You are both grieving. But...”

And now it was the mouse’s turn to sigh. 

“Sans is clearly taking the loss of your teammate far worse than yourself.” 

Although Russ wanted to shout and scream that he too suffered daily from the loss of Calli, he knew that the principal’s words were accurate. Though his heart ached and his mind was plagued by the memory of her, Russ was managing to keep his head above water. Sam, however, though it was he who had been the calm and collected one of the team, simply ceased to function. He was slowly drowning in misery. 

“I’ll keep my eye on him.” Was all Russ could promise.

*************************************************

The next morning, Russ was distraught to find that Sam’s spherical prison remained. The square had been closed off from the public while it awaited repairs so only he and his concealed brother were present. 

He placed his hand against the bony walls and once again begged his brother to come out. 

“You need to come home, Sam.” He murmured gently. 

But what did that even mean anymore? Where was home now? 

‘Home’ used to mean America, where he and his brother shared an apartment with Calli. It overlooked the sea and was granted the view of beautiful sunsets every night. They each had their own room. The brothers had let Calli take the one with the most natural light. She had decorated it with tropical plants and elegant pieces of art. Shelves filled with romantic novels lined the wall behind her bed, which was always neatly made. The whole room smelt like sunshine. 

Russ’ room was the largest, it was filled with bold colours and depended on symmetry. Each thing had its place and everything was to be put back in an orderly fashion. It always infuriated him when Sam would purposely move something while he was out. It would only ever be something small, a pair of socks, a dumbell, a pot of hairstyling wax...but Russ would always notice and burst into Sam’s room to complain. 

Sam’s room was the smallest. It had minimal furniture and the least decor. Sci-fi books would lay open on his desk for weeks while the sound of video games could be heard in the evening. There was one potted plant in the corner of the room that Calliope had gifted him for his birthday. Surprisingly, he had managed to keep it alive. His messy sock drawer always prompted a five minute rant from Russ, who often had to look through it to retrieve the socks his brother had stolen. 

Despite this, it was always Sam’s room that the three teammates spent the most time in. 

There were many evenings spent squashed together on his bed watching a T.V series or playing on his game consoles. Though their living room was spacious and equipped with a HD flatscreen, there was something about Sam’s little room that always brought the three of them together. Perhaps it simply radiated his relaxed aura that always drew people to him. 

Regardless of the reason, Russ couldn’t help but feel a wave of homesickness crash over him. They couldn’t stay here forever, Russ knew that. But the thought of having to leave Calliope behind was almost too much to bear. 

“Sam, please!” Russ pleaded, fighting the urge to start beating his fists against the barrier his brother had put between them. 

“Come out!”

Hidden away from Russ’ weeping eyes, a weary Sam rested against Calliope’s silent statue. Inside the sphere was cold and dark. Most of the noises outside were muffled. But he could hear his younger brother’s pleas as clear as day. He longed to answer him, but he was simply too weak to speak. His lack of food, sleep, water and sunlight had completely drained him. The use of the GasterBlaster had almost sent him into unconsciousness. But he had fought to stay awake. He couldn’t bear the thought of waking up to see another villain had succeeded in destroying Calliope’s statue. How he longed to hear her laughter again. To feel her hands on him. Even just to remember her scent. But her motionless, cold, stony figure bore no scent. At least not her own- not of flowers and sunlight. Instead, his lonely sphere contained the scent of the two garments that accompanied him- his jacket and his brother’s scarf. They reminded him of home. How long would they stay in Japan in the hopes that Calli would be returned to them? But to leave her behind...

Tears rolled down his hallow cheeks as he heard his brother’s footsteps recede. 

The new voice awoke him with a start, his head slipping from Calliope’s hard shoulder. He had lapsed into unconsciousness again, but for how long this time? 

“Sans!” It called gruffly and Sam immediately knew who stood on the other side of the sphere. 

“You gotta cut the crap and come back inside.” 

Bakugo’s angry voice carried through the thick walls of his fortress. 

“Your brother needs you, you know! You just gonna hide away in there forever?” 

Sam heaved a sigh through cracked, sore lips. His body ached and his limbs felt heavy. 

“This isn’t what Calli would have wanted!” He barked. 

A faint memory wandered across Sam’s weakened mind. Bakugo had been the only student not to Calli by her nickname. At least until now. 

“Get it together! You’re not the only one grieving! Papyrus lost Calli too. And now he’s afraid he’ll lose his brother.” 

The sound of a fist colliding against the bones cut through the silence that followed. The structure shuddered under the impact. 

“Answer me, you bastard!”

Just as Bakugo pulled his fist back to punch at the sphere again, the bones crumbled to dust. The teenager’s eyes widened at the sight they revealed. Sans’ malnourished body lay slumped against Calliope’s statue. Though he was naturally pale, his personal neglect had sapped the usual brightness from his eyes and skin that prevented him from truly looking like a skeleton. Although, right now, he almost did look like an undead monster. 

“Heya...” Sans wheezed, barely able to open his eyes to look at him. 

“Damn it, Sans.” Bakugo growled. 

“You better be able to walk, you damn nerd...”

When Papyrus had opened the door to see Bakugo supporting his older brother around his shoulder, he had stalled in surprise. 

“You gonna let me in, or what?” 

Papyrus flustered, stepping back to let the UA student lead a barely conscious Sans to the bed. 

“Keep an eye on him while I go get the old lady.” He ordered, and Papyrus could only nod in quiet disbelief as Bakugo left to fetch Recovery Girl. 

Over the course of the next few days, many of the students came by the Skelebros’ room to visit Sans as he began his recovery. The boys would sit around his bed and relay what they had learnt in their training that day. Kirishima would occasionally compliment Sans’ ever improving appearance and was the first to suggest he start working out with him once Recovery Girl said he was able. 

As for the girls, they would all pile onto his bed and share laughter and stories with him. Sometimes they would mess with his hair, that was well due a trim, and he would playfully accuse them of taking advantage of his weakened state. It was a relief to finally hear Sam laugh, even if it was a little more hollow that before. Though their hearts were still broken, the brothers were beginning to heal together. 

And then one day, after a lengthy discussion about possibly returning back to America, Deku had knocked on their door. 

The teenager had spoken cautiously, his voice steadily tying to contain his excitement. 

He had just returned from a mission. They had saved a young girl. Her name was Eri...


	17. Gaster Brothers

“There’s a chance she could be the key to restoring Calli and the other people who have turned to stone.” Aizawa explained as he, Deku and the Skelebros stood in the principal’s office later that evening. 

“But it’s risky...” the mouse continued. 

“Eri’s power can be unpredictable due to her young age. We also don’t know if it’s possible to return everyone back as her quirk only works on people and...” he said the next part very carefully, “well, what with them being stone...”

Sam nodded. He understood what the principal was getting at, even if he didn’t use the word ‘object.’ 

“Not only that-“ Aizawa added, “if she does successfully manage to reverse Calliope’s quirk, there’s a high possibility that each victim, including Calliope, will suffer from memory loss, depending on how far back Eri’s quirk takes them.” 

The principal nodded slowly over his arched fingertips. 

“Yes, when she wakes up, Calliope may not remember what happened. She may even forget the two of you.” 

Deku glanced over at the brothers as they exchanged troubled looks. 

It was a gamble. The thought of bringing Calli back was overwhelming, but the idea of her not remembering anything about her life with them even more so. 

“And of course...” Aizawa continued, his tone steady, “there’s also the risk that Eri could erase Calliope’s existence entirely. 

He then retold the Skelebros the tragic story of how Eri had accidentally wiped her father from the face of the earth. Her mother had then disowned her in her grief. Sam’s heart skipped a beat. The story sounded hauntingly familiar to one Calli had told him in confidence one time in his room back in America. He remembered how he’d gently brushed the hair from her face, his fingers gliding softly over the thin scar across her eye...

“I know it’s a big decision. Therefore, you should think on it long and hard. Eri needs time to recover also, so we mustn’t rush.” 

The principal then bid them goodnight. 

Sam and Russ had both lain awake in their bed that night. For a while they simply shared the silence, listening to their own thoughts and the chirp of the crickets outside their open window. It had been Sam who spoke first. 

“We have to try.” His said firmly into the darkness.

Russ sighed, sitting up to look over at his brother. 

“And what if it goes wrong? What happens if she’s wiped from existence?”

Sam turned his head to face him, his features barely visible in the gloom. The moon was full outside. 

“Then nothing with have changed. She’s already gone.” 

Russ knew it was a hard thing for Sam to admit. For a long time, they had treated Calli’s statue as if she were still alive, Sam especially. But the time he had spent trapped in his sphere with her had clearly opened his eyes to the reality of the situation. 

“But if it works, then we can get her back.”

“And if she doesn’t remember us?”

Sam swallowed. Though the thought broke his heart, he couldn’t let himself think so selfishly. 

“Then so be it. But she deserves a second chance at life.” 

Russ exhaled into the dark. 

“I agree.”

Then after a short pause.

“But we still have to wait for Eri to make a full recovery.”

Sam nodded even though Russ couldn’t see him for the dark. 

“And in the meantime, you should focus on getting better too.”

This time, Sam made himself heard. 

“Of course.” 

With hope spurring him on, Sam committed himself to his training. He had lost a lot of weight over the last few weeks, and his strength along with it. His last battle defending Calli’s statue had almost killed him. 

Though he was almost 10 years older than the students of Class 1A, he took to training along side them in the afternoons, then again with his brother late into the night. During the day, he made sure to eat well and eat often. Slowly, but surely, his strength came back to him. His face regained it’s boyish roundness and his eyes their brightness. He still had a long way to go to achieve the strong build he had once had in his upper body, but the progress was steady. 

And all the while, little Eri got better. Deku kept the Skelebros informed of her development. He had even asked Aizawa if it were possible to arrange a meeting between her and the brothers. 

She was still so young, so they kept the details to a minimum when they explained their request to her. 

“So...” she began in a small voice as she sat before them in her room, “you want me to try to bring back your friend?”

Sam nodded. 

“And some other people too.”

The other victims Calliope had accidentally turned to stone where still being kept in a safe house. Their families had been alerted to the news that Eri may be able to reverse the effects of the petrification. All but two had accepted. It was the families of the elderly victims that had declined. The families had both stated that they were sickly and that this had been a somewhat peaceful and painless way to go. 

“I-I can try...” Eri mumbled, wringing her tiny fingers anxiously. 

“We’d appreciate that very much, Eri.” Sam smiled. 

Deku knelt beside her and spoke in his kind, encouraging voice.

“Just do your best, Eri. That’s all we ask.” 

The doctors suggested they wait a little longer before attempting the reversals. Eri was still a little unstable. 

During this time, the students of UA were planning their summer festival. Between the preparations, many of the students still took the time to visit Calli’s statue. The brothers would occasionally accompany them and together they would sit and talk to the silent statue about everything that was happening. It was an unspoken rule, however, to never mention Eri and the possibility of Calliope returning to them. 

As the planning for the festival continued, The Skelebros continued with Sam’s training. Russ had never been prouder of his older sibling’s determination. Sam was usually so adverse to training any more than necessary. Kirishima even mentioned one afternoon while sparring that Sam looked fitter than he had done upon meeting them for the first time. 

“You flatter me,” was Sam’s smiling response. 

Bakugo certainly didn’t hold back when he trained with Sam on occasions. 

“C’mon, ya damn nerd! You still need me to carry you?” 

Soon enough, the day they had all been waiting for arrived. The summer festival was already over and Eri had been given the all clear by the doctors weeks ago. Due to the nature of her quirk, she had had to use her powers sparingly meaning that the reversals had to be staggered. The first few victims had been restored without a single hitch. The suffered no memory loss nor lasting after effects. The rest however, all had trouble recalling the events of many months leading up to their petrification. Still, non had vanished nor completely forgotten their families. 

But now it was time for Calli. 

Though the other petrification victims had been returned to their formers selves without many unwanted side effects, the brother’s still feared that Calliope’s reversal may not go as smoothly. 

They gathered at the fountain with Aizawa, Eri and Deku. Every face housed the same expression of apprehension. They arrived early Sunday morning so that the square was empty of people. Russ made sure the scarf around Calliope’s eyes was secure, just in case Eri’s reversal only took her back to the moment of her trauma. Sam shuffled nervously. Deku had never seen him look so on edge. He was usually always the relaxed one. But this morning, his hands noticeably twisted inside his jacket pockets while his jaw worked anxiously. And when Eri approached Calliope’s stony silhouette, his eyes began to glisten. Russ stepped back to join him at his side and placed a firm hand on his shoulder. 

All eyes were on Eri as she activated her quirk. Only Aizawa had seen her use it on the other petrification victims so only he knew what to expect. The reversal was simple, quick, a strange sight to behold. Calliope’s body shuddered as her stony, grey skin and hair seeped back into their previous colours of bronze and green. Sam’s body tensed beneath his brother’s firm grip as Calliope’s gasp cut through the still silence. The sudden sound caused Eri to stumble and retreat behind Deku who looked on with wide eyes. 

Calliope instinctively reached up to touch the fabric concealing her eyes. Her body felt unnaturally cold, her limbs uncomfortably heavy as she lifted her arms. 

“Calli...” she heard a voice call softly. 

Where was she? She could hear the faint sound of running water, the cold surface of stone beneath her. A fountain? She didn’t remember there being a fountain on campus at Juggernaut. Had she fallen asleep studying again? 

“Calli...” the voice called again. 

Calli? No one called her Calli. 

Her fingers gripped the fabric at her eyes. She wanted to tear it away but, for some reason, some part of her told her not to. 

“Y-Yes?” She called back, her voice small and cautious. She lifted the fabric at her eyes just a fraction. The bright glare of sunlight made her wince. 

“Are you...” the voice began. It was a man’s voice. It didn’t sound familiar. Though, her mind was still groggy. 

The man tried again. 

“Can you...remember anything?” 

It was a peculiar question. Had she been drugged? Had she passed out on campus? She remembered she’d been working hard. She had been studying late into the night in preparation for her final exams. 

“I-I don’t understand?” She replied, and slipped the fabric off her eyes completely. She blinked away the glare of the sunlight as her vision came into focus. She kept her eyes down. She saw her hands. They were dirty. Her fingers nails were painted gold, the varnish was chipped in places. But she never painted her nails...

“Where am I?” She asked. A headache was beginning to creep in. Turning her head, she counted four bodies stood around her. No, five bodies? One was that of a child who cowered behind what looked like a teenage boy. How she wished she could just raise her head and look at them properly. But her quirk...

“Calli...” a new voice piped up. Another male. Though, this time, it stirred a vague memory. 

“You need to come with us.”

Yes. She had heard this voice before. But from where? 

“We can explain once we’re back inside.”

A hand came into her line of vision. Her head began to pound. The pain threatened to push her into unconsciousness. She took the hand in spite of herself. When it pulled her gently to her feet, she slipped into darkness, but not before she felt two pairs of hands catch her. 

When she woke up, the warmth had returned to her body. Someone had placed her in a bed. She smelt fresh linen and flowers. There were roses on the bedside table beside her. The room was white and brightly lit. It must have been a hospital room. Perhaps the ward at Juggernaut? Although, she remembered that those walls were pastel blue, not white. 

Someone else was in the room with her. She heard them stir as she made to sit up. 

“Heya, Calli” that same, unfamiliar voice from earlier said. 

“How are you feeling?” Said the other vaguely familiar one. 

She went to rub her eyes only to find that she was wearing some sort of eyewear. 

“A student made them for you.” One of the men said. 

“They block your quirk.” Said the other.

“So you can look at us...if you want.”

She did so, slowly. It was a strange thing to do. She was so used to keeping her eyes lowered. When they locked onto the two young men sat beside her, she’d instinctively averted her gaze straight after. 

“Do you remember us?” One of the men asked. His voice was low and tinged with sadness. 

She attempted a second look at them. 

They were around her age. One was tall and lean, dressed in a tight t-shirt. The other was shorter with broad shoulders, noticeable even beneath his oversized jacket. Their eyes were black where white should have been, but their irises differed. As she took the time to really study their eyes, something she’d never had the privilege to do before without the person tensing up, she noted how one set was warm like honey while the other was cold like ice chips. They both had white hair and fair skin. Perhaps they were brothers? There was something vaguely familiar about them but her mind was still hazy from whatever had happened to her. Enough so, that she strangely hadn’t begun to panic despite her memory being fuzzy. 

“I-I’m not sure...” she eventually answered. She saw them both deflate slightly. 

“I’m sorry. My memory is...” she rubbed her temple and tried to recall the last thing she could remember. She had been in her dorm back at Juggernaut, revising for her finals. She had passed the physical exams but she was worried about the written tests. 

“Have I missed the theory exam?” She asked all of a sudden. She couldn’t afford to fail. She was meant to graduate this year.

The two young men exchanged sad glances. Her stomach dropped. 

“Oh no!” She whimpered. 

“Please don’t tell me I’ve missed the exam! What happened?”

Panic began to set in now. She had worked so hard this year. Perhaps too hard. Had she worked herself sick? How long was she out for? 

“Calli...” the taller man murmured, leaning towards her. His gentle eyes bore into hers. It was a strange sensation to be able to speak to someone while maintaining eye contact. Whoever made her glasses was a genius. 

“Calli, we all graduated years ago.”

She glanced from one sad face to the other. The light-eyed brother looked like he was about to cry. Frowning, she sat up straighter. 

“What are you talking about?” 

Another shared look of sadness. They seemed to be silently debating who should speak next. It was the taller of the two who answered. The other cast his eyes to the floor. She saw one tear roll down his cheek. 

“It happened again, Calli...” he said, his voice low. 

Calliope furrowed her brow. Saying nothing, she willed him to continue. But he stalled and began to naw the inside of his cheek as his eyes searched hers. It still felt so alien to her to look someone in the eye like this and not have them succumb to her quirk. But the joy that this would have brought her, had it been under any other circumstance, was swiftly washed away as the many questions began to flood her mind. What had happened to her? Who were these men? What did they mean? What had happened again? 

“Calli, you must remember us. Even a little. We went to school together. It’s Russ and Sam Gaster.”

The names did indeed ring a bell. Yes. They were students from the years above her. The Gaster brothers were actually quite famous at their school, though she hadn’t really seen nor spoken to them. So why, then, were they talking to her as if they were her friends? Why did they keep calling her ‘Calli.’ No one called her that. 

“What do you mean by ‘went to school’?” She asked, frustration building. “And what happened again?” 

This time, it was the one she knew to be Sam Gaster that spoke. Now when she looked at him, she vaguely remembered seeing his face on the wall of fame at Juggernaut. He’d graduated two years before her and was looking up to be ranked among the world’s top 10 heroes. 

“Your quirk, Calli.” He said softly as another tear rolled down his pale cheek. 

“Just like what happened when you were a kid.”

His words took her completely by surprise. Though they were vague, she knew exactly what he meant but couldn’t quite believe it. She had never spoken to anyone about what had happened all those years ago, especially not the Gaster brothers. Still in disbelief, she tried to play coy. No one was supposed to know her secret. 

“I-I don’t know what you-“

But Sam cut across her. 

“Yeah you do, Calli.” And his light eyes held hers steadily.

“When you were 6 years old...” he began, leaning forwards, “you overheard your parents arguing...”

She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. He couldn’t possibly know. How could he possibly know? 

“You went downstairs and saw your dad start to hit your mum.”

Impossible. This was impossible. She had never shared this information with anyone before. Yet, he spoke with sympathy in his voice and sadness in his eyes. His younger brother, Russ, was staring sadly at the floor. 

“He wouldn’t stop, even when you asked him to and then...”

His eyes held hers, her quirk rendered useless behind the eyewear she wore. His hand twitched as he made to take hers but decided against it. 

“Calli, you turned your father to stone. And then your mother tried to cut out your eyes. You...”

He eyed her look of utter disbelief with his own look of despair. When he tried to reach for her face, she flinched causing him to retract it just after. 

“You showed me your scar one day after we went to the beach. Your scales- your scales have spread since then. You were so happy that you couldn’t see it anymore...”

Calliope was shaking her head. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. How on earth did this man she had only glimpsed on occasions know all about her deepest, darkest secret? 

“I don’t understand,” she whimpered, hugging her arms as fear and confusion began to set in. 

“What happened to me? Why can’t I remember any of this? Why can’t I remember you?” 

Her words made Sam wince and his brother finally raised his head. 

“Calli, we don’t know why or how but...”

Russ paused and gently placed a hand on her shoulder. Something about the gesture made Calliope feel as though he had done this many times before though, she recalled no memory of the sort. 

“Something caused your quirk to react the same way again.”

Calliope felt her stomach drop. Her breath caught in her throat and her fingers clenched. 

“You accidentally turned 8 people to stone, followed by yourself.”

She could hear his every word but could barely process them. She could feel his hand on her shoulder but at the same time felt numb. 

“You saw your own reflection...” Sam croaked, he was crying openly now. 

“You were gone for months. We thought we’d lost you.”

He kept saying ‘we.’ But the word had no significance to her. Who were these two men to her, other than former students of her school? They spoke to her as if...as if she had been like family. Had she truly shared her biggest secret with them? 

“But we found someone who reversed what happened. Their quirk is to rewind. But it seems...” Russ began, pausing to exchange a sorrowful look with his older sibling, “it seems that you’ve lost almost a years worth of memories.”

Shaken, Calliope felt the exhaustion flood back into her body. Head spinning, she slumped back against the pillows behind her. 

Just then, the door to her room opened and in walked in a short, elderly woman she didn’t recognise. 

“Boys...perhaps it’s best if you left dear Calliope rest for a while.” She suggested kindly.

But as the men nodded their heads and rose to leave, Calliope grabbed for their arms.

“Wait!” She blurted, ignoring the dull ache of her limbs.

“You can’t go! You have to tell me everything!”

The old lady insisted that they leave but Calliope tightened her grip. How could she possibly let them go after what she had just heard. She still didn’t even know who these two men meant to her. Why were the Gaster brothers, of all people, the ones to sit by her hospital bed? Why were the Gaster brothers the ones who knew all about her tragic past? What else did they know? What exactly had happened in the year she now knew nothing about? 

“Stay. Please,” she begged. 

And, despite the old lady’s grumbling’s, Sam and Russ Gaster sat back down and began their long story.


	18. Who We Were

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More angst?

Calliope sat and listened to the brothers’ remarkable story. Her story. 

They told her that she had graduated from Juggernaut one year after Russ. Despite her fears, she had passed every exam with flying colours but that did little to boost her self-confidence. The brothers told her how they had become pro heroes in America and now went by the name the Skelebros. 

Supposedly, Calliope had bumped into them one day. Russ had recognised her from Juggernaut and, after they got talking, suggested that she train under them as their apprentice. Before losing her memory, Calliope had been with them for almost 7 months. Her apprenticeship had been coming to an end. 

They told her all about how far she had come, how much she had improved over the course of their time together. Russ then informed her all about their trip to the Japanese school of UA. That’s where they were currently. 

It all seemed so surreal to Calliope as she sat and listened to them. They had even shown her articles with her photo in them, and videos of them fighting and training together. But even after hearing and witnessing all this, she still couldn’t believe it were true.

It was so strange to see herself on screen dressed in a skin tight hero costume, fighting along side two pros. The young woman in the videos and magazines looked strong, confident and unfamiliar. It was her but at the same time it wasn’t. 

And all the while as the brothers relayed this information, she couldn’t help but notice how Sam’s eyes would glaze over sadly. She couldn’t help but feel as though he was withholding information from her. What else had occurred over the course of her time with them? 

Over the next few weeks, many people came to visit Calliope, none of whom she recognised. Yet they all approached her as you would an old friend. She took the time to learn, or relearn, all their names. They all had stories to tell and encouragement to give. She listened. She smiled. She tried to remember. It killed her not to remember. 

Even when they showed her photos of her last few days before losing her memory, of her dressed in green satin, of her smiling with her arms around friends, of Sam smiling with his arms around her...

She simply couldn’t recall a single moment. But how she longed to. How she longed to remember the laughter, the friendships and every intimate moment in between. 

As soon as her legs found their strength, she took to the training grounds. If she really had become the young woman she had seen standing proudly in the photos and fighting along side two pro heroes, she was determined to achieve it all over again. 

It was a strange thing to have to do- rediscovering the person you once were. It seemed she had learnt so much and come so far, only to be hurtled straight back to the starting line again. All the friendships and memories she had made had to be formed all over again. But would they ever be the same? What if she couldn’t become the person they once knew? What if she became someone else this time around? What if she couldn’t achieve what she had done the first time around? 

These kind of thoughts plagued her daily as she restarted her training. The Skelebros were patient and kind, yet she knew they were treading carefully. She could tell by the way they looked at her that they didn’t see the Calliope they once knew, but a stranger. She no longer understood the insides jokes they sometimes let slip, or couldn’t recall the events from the anecdotes they shared. And when it came to fighting along side them, well, she simply couldn’t find her rhythm. She would often spar with Russ and Sam, sometimes together and other times one on one. And every time she could feel them holding back. It felt like they were babying her. Perhaps they felt like they were being kind, but to her it felt almost cruel. 

“I wish you’d stop looking at me like that,” she eventually snapped one day. Her brow was coated in sweat and her hair was coming lose from it’s braid. Sam looked startled as he stepped back from her. 

They were just wrapping up another sparring session. Calliope had once been highly skilled at grappling but, even after 2 weeks of solid training, she still hadn’t managed to make either of her mentors tap out. 

“Like what?” He asked, smiling that fake smile he always wore these days. 

“Like you’re looking at a ghost.” She frowned angrily as she rubbed a towel across the back of her neck. She had removed her visor and tossed it onto a bench. It had been Yaoyorozu who had made her a new visor for her old one still remained lost. It’s design was far simpler, no longer resembling the head of a viper. 

Russ was back at the dorm planning his lessons for the week, much to Calliope’s disappointment. Ever since she woke up from her quirk, he had shown the most tact. Even though he was a stranger to her all over again, she had gravitated towards him with ease. They spoke freely and comfortably. He didn’t make her feel like an imposter. Sam, however, was a different story entirely. She often caught him glancing sadly at her. When he spoke to her, his voice was unnaturally polite and cheery. She had heard how he spoke to others; his voice was low and lazy, a casual drawl that was pleasant to the ear. But when he spoke to her, his tone was almost grating. 

Sam’s eyes watched her carefully as she strode angrily over to the water dispenser. She filled a cup and hoped the chilled liquid would ease her flaring temper. Perhaps she was being unfair. In fact, a part of her knew she was. The frustrations of trying to regain all that she had lost from her tragic ordeal were causing her to lash out. Did the old Calliope ever lash out? What did it matter...

“Calli...” he called softly. She hadn’t noticed him draw closer. 

“I-I’m sorry.” He muttered. 

His small voice did nothing to calm her mounting vexations. She took another sip of water. 

“It’s just-“

“Just what?” She snapped, spinning to face him. Her glaring eyes locked on to his mournful ones and his body froze beneath her gaze. She wasn’t wearing her visor. 

Her quirk held him like a vice as she continued to look fixedly at him. She had caught him mid sentence. His lips were parted slightly and his eyes were wide, giving him the appearance of a rabbit caught in headlights. Of course, he couldn’t answer her but she waited silently nonetheless as her acid-yellow eyes searched his bewildered face. 

“Is it just that you’re disappointed that I haven’t fallen into your arms yet?” She spat. 

“Or that I’m no longer the smiling heroine you remember?” 

The anger flowed into every word as she continued to vent her rage at her petrified prisoner. 

“Perhaps you’re worried I’ll never become the Calliope you once knew. And maybe I won’t. What then? Hm, Sam?”

His eyes were beginning to water. Whether it was because of her quirk or because of her words, she couldn’t be sure. But she continued her rant anyway. 

“What then, Sam?”

She took a step closer, close enough that she could hear how ragged his breathing was. 

“Are you just going to continue to look at me like I’m some sort of headstone?” 

Now it was her eyes that were beginning to water. 

“I don’t know what you thought we were before I turned to stone...” She croaked as her voice threatened to break. 

“But that isn’t us anymore. So, continue to look at me like you don’t know who I am because...I don’t know who you are either!” 

And when she closed her eyes finally as tears threatened to escape them, she heard Sam’s rattled intake of air as he was released from her quirk. 

“I know you don’t remember...” she heard him whisper into the silence of the room. 

“But one of the last things I said to you was-“

Calliope felt her heart skip a beat.

“Don’t.” She moaned, with a slow shake of her head. 

Though no one had told her explicitly, from the conversations she had had with the students of UA and Russ, she had guessed early on that she had once possessed feelings for Sam Gaster. And that he had possessed, and clearly still did, feelings for her. But to hear him say the words, in this setting. No...

It was all still too much, too soon. 

She turned away with her eyes still closed. She could feel him watching her as she strode over to her pick up her visor. After slipping it on, she turned back to face him but he had already left. 

“I know it’s hard, brother. But you can’t expect her to suddenly make up a years worth of lost time in the space of a few weeks.” 

Russ sat on the armchair opposite Sam later that evening. 

“I know...” was all he managed. 

It pained Russ to see Sam so heartbroken. Though his health had returned to him, the sadness still remained. He hoped it wouldn’t send him into another downward spiral. When he watched his older brother reached for a packet of peanuts, he was thankful to see that he was at least still eating. 

“Give her time,” Russ said through a sympathetic smile. 

But he knew his words did little to quiet the fears in Sam’s head. He knew what his older sibling feared above all was the notion that Calliope may not fall in love with him a second time round. As he watched his brother chew quietly, Russ thought it best to leave the conversation at that. 

As the days drew on, Russ watched Calli’s relationships with the students of Class 1A begin to reform as naturally as they had done the first time around. She had started to attend their lessons to relearn the skills and techniques she once knew. Russ wasn’t at all surprised to see how quickly she progressed. When he and his brother had first taught her all those months ago, they had both been equally impressed by her prowess. So, as he watched Calliope take Mina down with a swift swipe of her lean legs, he couldn’t help but smile as they laughed it off. 

“Geez, Calli!” Quipped Mina as she rubbed her behind, “Don’t hold back, or anything!” 

Calliope grinned as she helped the pink girl to her feet. 

“Oh c’mon! I was just getting you back for beating me in the race the other day!”

“Mina totally won by fluke!” Kaminari butted in. 

The students then began to argue amicably as Sam approached the scene. He had just returned from a meeting with the principal about their future plans to stay in Japan. 

“How did it go?” Russ asked his brother over the continued bickering. 

Sam shrugged, his eyes gliding over the scene, stropping only for a moment on Calliope’s obliviously smiling face. 

“I told him we’d be staying a little longer until we discuss our plans with Calli.” 

Russ nodded and gave a heavy sigh. The discussion in question would be an awkward one. Calliope had been mere weeks from completing her apprenticeship with them and becoming a full time member of their team. The three of them shared a home back in America and were supposed to have been back there months ago now. But after the incident with Calliope’s quirk, none of them knew what the future held for their team. They would have to ask Calliope if she wanted to remain with them or go solo. Perhaps she wouldn’t want to continue hero work at all. The notion made by brothers’ hearts ache but it was out of their hands. 

“We’ll bring it up with her this weekend.” Russ suggested. Sam nodded at his side. 

“In the meantime...” Russ began, lowering his voice so that only his older sibling could hear, “why don’t you take Calli out for an evening this week?”

He felt Sam’s eyes turn on him. The students were now lounging casually in groups along the training grounds. Their lesson had ended 10 minutes ago but Russ was yet to dismiss them. They didn’t seem to notice as they chatted amongst themselves. 

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Sam muttered back, his hands in his pockets. Though he couldn’t see them, Russ knew Sam’s fingers were toying with the inner lining of his pockets- a habit he had developed when nervous or uncomfortable, which happened to be more and more frequent these days. 

Russ sighed again. 

“I’m sick of seeing you two avoiding each other.”

Sam clicked his tongue. “Oh, I’m sorry. How hard it must be for you...” his tone dripped in sarcasm and spite. But it didn’t faze Russ as he replied.

“Sam. At the end of the day, that’s still Calli.” He nodded in her direction. She was laughing with the group of girls about something Hagakure had said. 

“Yes, she’s lost all memory of the past year. But I guarantee she still likes spicy food and fruity drinks...”

He turned to see Sam’s expression soften. 

“...and chocolate cake and the sound of old, vinyl records.” 

Sam’s lip twitched. 

“So pull yourself together and treat her to those things. She deserves it.” 

Russ gave a final, heavy sigh as he placed a hand on his brother’s slouching shoulder. 

“Honestly, Sam...” he breathed, as his sibling turned to face him. 

“I can’t believe I'm the one giving you dating advice.” 

Sam grunted a laugh. It had always been him and Calliope who urged Russ to approach members of the opposite sex. Despite all his confidence, the younger sibling had always been somewhat oblivious to the advances of women. Sam, on the other hand, could usually charm his way in or out of any situation. 

“And if she declines?” Sam spoke up, his voice trying sound casual despite his obvious worry.

Russ shrugged, “well at least you tried, right?”


	19. If One Day...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Who we shipping?

And she did decline, stating that she was still too uncomfortable with the idea of venturing off campus. Ever since the incident, Calliope had made it known that she feared the Japanese public would shun her for what she’d done. Though the victims had been restored, she feared that her quirk would be forever considered like that of a villains. Strangers would forever be on edge around her, in case they suddenly turned to stone. 

He took the rejection with a brave face- it actually made her heart sink a little. Ever since their moment after their sparring session, Sam had adjusted his entire demeanour around her. It seemed her outburst had acted like a storm that cleared the air. He no longer spoke to her in strained politeness or forced enthusiasm. His posture and tone became more relaxed and she finally felt she could be around him without any discomfort. But that didn’t mean she was ready to start going to romantic dinners with him...

“But you always said he never takes you anywhere romantic!” Hagakure and Mina pointed out one day after Calliope had confided in them about the strange situation. She and the girls were gathered in the common area around one of Sato’s cakes, each holding a cup of Yaoyorozu’s lavender tea. 

“Yeah, you never really dated in the first place. At least that’s what you kept telling us.” 

Mina half smiled, half pouted at Calliope’s puzzled expression. 

“Oh Calli...” she cooed, taking her by the hand. 

“I know it must be so strange for you.”

Calliope sighed as she tossed her hair behind her. The only people she felt comfortable talking about her memory loss to was the girls. Their energy was so much more different than anyone else’s. 

“You have no idea...” she mumbled, returning the squeeze Mina’s hand gave her. 

“But...” Hagakure’s voice floated from across the room, “it must be horrible for Sans too.”

Jirou flashed a stern look over her slice of cake towards the floating pair of pyjamas. 

“I think Calli’s needs and feelings should be priority,” the dark haired girl commented. 

“Yeah, but he lov-“

And Jirou shushed her in irritation. 

Calliope remained silent, as did everyone else in the moments that followed. 

It was Yaoyorozu who eventually spoke up first. And her question caught Calliope off guard. 

“What do you want, Calli?” 

Her fingers flinched in Mina’a hand. It was such a simple question, one that had kept her awake most nights since her incident. 

“What do I want?” Calliope repeated, and considered the question quietly whilst trying to subdue the rising anxiety it caused. 

“I’m not sure anymore.”

She then turned to the group of frowning girls before her.

“What did I want before?”

The girls exchanged perplexed glances. No one spoke for a while. 

“You never really told us,” Tsu informed, sitting cross legged on the couch opposite her. 

“But you seemed happy with what you had. So, I suppose you have to decide if you want to try and achieve it all again or see where this new path will take you.” 

The frog-girl’s answer wasn’t exactly enlightening, for Calliope had already figured this out weeks ago. 

“Whatever you choose, you mustn’t force it. What will be, will be right?” Mina chirped, injecting a sing-song tone to the latter part of her statement.

Calliope sighed. She had forgotten about her tea. It felt cold against her lips when she tipped her cup towards them. 

“Honestly, I think you’re overthinking this whole situation with Sam.” Ochako piped up as they all finished their cake. 

“I mean, you and the Skelebros were like a family. Regardless of what you and Sam were, the three of you were a team and still are despite what happened!” 

Mina nodded. 

“Yeah. Stop worrying about recreating every moment from before, and focus on sharing new moments together. And don’t let yourself get too hung up on whether or not they’ll lead to something.” 

Calliope swallowed her cold tea as she listened to their pep talk. Her heart was still heavy and her head was still groggy with confusion. But, as she bid the girls goodnight, her spirits had lifted regardless. 

It had been Calliope who suggested dinner next. 

She had stopped Sam in the hallway one evening after training. He had finally trimmed his hair and was now keeping on top of his stubble. When he smiled at her greeting, she noticed for the first time that his cheeks dimpled. With his fresh haircut, clean shaven face and dimples, Sam looked like the young, handsome man she remembered from Juggernaut’s hall of fame. 

“Sup, Calli?” He asked, hands in his jacket pockets and shoulders slouched. He regarded her with his cool eyes, so different from his younger brother’s. 

“Hey,” she managed, embarrassed by her sudden lack of composure. 

“I was wondering if...” and she was thankful for her visor as she felt heat flood her cheeks beneath it. 

“About your offer to go to dinner...” 

Sam’s smile faltered slightly, his hand automatically went to his newly cut hair. It retained its messy nature which was only amplified by his nervous hand as it raked through it. 

“Oh, Yeah. About that. I’m sorry if I made you feel-“

“Are you free tonight?” 

Her interjection had stunned him. He blinked away his surprise as his hand slowly dropped to his side and retreated back into his jacket pocket. 

“Oh,” he grunted awkwardly. A nervous laugh. A shuffle of feet.

“Yeah, you-erm, you wanna grab something to eat later?” He asked, his voice casual and his eyes hopeful. 

Calliope nodded and found herself smiling. There was something about his bashfulness she found amusing. Had he always been like this? For some reason, Calliope doubted it. 

When 7pm rolled by, Calliope wasn’t surprised to see Sam already waiting for her down by the gates of UA. When he turned to greet her, her heart began to hammer in her chest. Why was she so nervous? 

It was a strange thing to be told that you were once in love with someone, then to face that person and not even remember what it was about them that made you feel that way. But when cast his light eyes towards her and grinned his boyish grin, she was almost glad to relive it all over again. 

He was undoubtedly good-looking. Not in the classic sense like Russ was. Russ was tall, well groomed and noticeably muscular. But Sam...Sam was unconventionally attractive. Or at least she thought so as she snuck glances at him while they walked into the city. But that surely hadn’t been enough for her to have fallen for him as completely as people had so often suggested. 

Perhaps it was his voice. Now that he had relaxed around her, he spoke easily in a mellifluous tone. Something about the way he pronounced certain words made her smile. She liked the way he said her name. He always made sure to look at her when he did. It was a little thing, a small detail, but subtly intimate. Still, she wouldn’t fall in love so easily. 

Perhaps, it was his sense of humour; his jokes came as easily as his conversation. As they sat at dinner, he had her laughing over her wine and seafood. So much so, that she hadn’t even noticed he had taken her hand in his from across the table. When her eyes finally rested on their intertwined fingers, her laughter had faltered. She withdrew her hand slowly and drank deeply from her glass. He had looked sheepish, but only for a moment before continuing the conversation with a swift change of subject. 

As the evening progressed, she realised just how odd it was to sit in front of someone who knew so much about you while you knew little to nothing about them. Which is why she had been the one to start asking all the questions.

Her wine-driven curiosity steered one question into the next. Sam willingly indulged her. The eldest Gaster brother was born in the autumn, he enjoyed baking, his favourite food was hotdogs and his taste in music was eclectic. He loved science-fiction and used to study quantum-physics with his father, the great W.D Gaster. Caliope had heard of him before. He was a renowned scientist that had contributed majorly to the ebb and flow of quirk evolution. It was amusing to picture the stern-faced man of science next his two sons; Sam and Russ seemed nothing like their dad. Neither of them knew their mother but the brothers suspected they had inherited their good-looks and humour from her. At least that’s what Sam jokingly told Calliope over dessert. 

“You remembered I like chocolate cake?” 

“Calli, when we were living together, you never stopped reminding me.”

Apparently, she would request he bake one every other weekend. 

If anyone in the restaurant had been weary of both Calliope and Sam after the incident months back, no one showed any explicit discomfort. Or perhaps Calliope simply hadn’t noticed due to the fact she was having one of the best nights she’d had in a long time. 

They split the bill after another round of drinks and ventured into the cool night air. Her cheeks rosy from the wine and her face hot beneath the visor, she pulled it off and tucked it into her handbag. The breeze felt delightful against her skin, as did the kiss Sam planted there once they reached the corridor to their rooms. 

“Thank you, for tonight,” she smiled, her eyes watching as their fingers tentatively intertwined between them. 

Sam laughed quietly as he lifted a shoulder.

“Heh, no need to thank me, Calli. It was my pleasure.” 

Their touch grew bolder. Their hands no longer gracing, but grasping. 

“I can see why I used to like you,” Calliope cooed, her uncovered eyes only able to meet his smiling lips. She watched them move gracefully as he replied.

“Used to?” 

Soft laughter escaped her. It was her fingers that continued to caress his as he watched her for an answer beneath a hooded gaze. 

“Sam...” she breathed, shaking her head. He sighed at the sound of his name on her lips. She felt the heat radiate from him. Usually, it was the younger brother Russ who radiated such warmth while Sam, a cool and soothing aura. Yet, as she stood so shamelessly close to him under the emboldening influence of white wine, she felt far from soothed. Quite the opposite in fact. Though the alcohol in her veins slowed her outer movements, beneath her chest her heart hammered quickly. 

“Sam...” she tried again, this time more sternly. 

“We’re not who we used to be.” 

The lids of her eyes felt heavy. They closed as the image of Sam’s face grew closer. She felt his forehead placed against her and his dessert-sweetened breath wash over her face as he said; “I know.”

His voice was low and quiet. His fingers no longer held hers but gently glided up and down her arms. 

“But I’m still who I was...” 

His fingers had reached her chin. 

“I still love you.”

Though her eyes were closed, she could hear his smile, feel his fingers at her face. His movements were slow and respectful, as though he were handling a delicate object or an untamed beast. But of course, she meant more to him that any object or beast. And his next words confirmed that. 

“So, I’ll wait. I’ll wait for you to decide what you want. And if one day, that’s to be with me then...”

He withdrew from her completely, taking the warmth with him. The air about them was immediately replaced by his naturally cool presence. 

He never did finish his sentence. It hung in the air and was lost to the silence. 

“Goodnight, Sam.”

She called, opening her eyes to watch their hands part ways. 

“Night, Calli.” 

And her night was good and her dreams were sweet.


	20. Prove It

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Who's your money on?

“Another great lesson, everyone!” Papyrus called as he deconstructed the immense obstacle course he had erected over a vast stretch of water. It had been a while since the students had taken part in one and he thought it would be a fun way to end a long, hard week of training. It was also particularly hot out so, for those that had ended up plummeting from the structure, the fall was almost a welcome relief. 

Calliope had taken part and came third to Iida and Deku. Bakugo had battled with her for third place but she had managed to cunningly catch his eye mid jump with a well-timed flip. Her quirk had seized him and sent his momentarily paralysed body crashing into the water below. He was obviously furious. The cold water rid him of his sweat leaving him unable to make the long jump back up to the course. His curses carried over the entire width of the lake. 

But when Calliope had approached him afterward to apologise, he had turned his head and grunted something that sounded like, ‘whatever.’ Out of all the boys in the class, Calliope found that Bakugo was the most intriguing. Though he acted brash and spoke bluntly to nearly everyone, he became strangely quiet around Calliope. She was aware that he had been present on the day she had turned to stone, and figured that may be why his attitude was slightly off around her. However, women’s’ intuition prodded that there was another reason. She hadn’t found the right moment to ask him about it yet though. And even if she did, she doubted he’d be forthcoming. Perhaps she’d have to opt for asking the closest person to him; Kirishima. All in due time, of course. 

The red-haired boy in question flexed his shoulders as they awaited further instruction from their teachers; the Skelebros had both been in charge of the class this afternoon though, as usual the older brother had taken a back seat. 

“Hey, Sans!” Kirishima called, as the rest of the class stretched out their throbbing muscles and tired limbs, those who had fallen into the lake wringing out their water logged P.E uniform. 

The older Skelebro raised his hooded head from his chest; he had been napping under a tree. 

“Yeah?” He called back, rubbing his ever-tired looking eyes. 

“How come you’ve stopped training with us?” 

It was true. The older brother, who had once joined them in their lessons after having slipped into a state of neglect during Calliope’s absence, no longer took part alongside the students. 

Once his strength had returned, so did his laziness. Once his chest and shoulders had filled back out, Sans decided that he needn’t train more than necessary. Papyrus knew it was a lost cause to try and convince him otherwise. 

“Because I don’t need to,” he shrugged back, pushing to his feet and stretching til his joints popped. He yawned loudly making his brother roll his eyes. 

“Pro heroes need to always keep on top of their training, Sans.” His younger brother frowned. 

Another idle shrug. “I took a nap, didn’t I?” Sam grinned, alluding to his need to conserve energy for his ultimate move. 

“You depend on your GasterBlaster too much!” Papyrus snapped, a hand on his hip. 

“Leave my GasterBlaster out of this, bro,” Sam smirked, prompting giggles from the girls and sniggers from the boys at his subtle innuendo. 

“If you’re so ready to be a teacher and not a student again, then why don’t you prove it?” Kirishima called, beating a fist against his own strong chest. 

“Yeah, Sans!” Sero challenged jokingly, followed by Mina and Ochako who bounced eagerly on the balls of their feet. 

Deku looked uncomfortable with the fact so many of his classmates were calling out a teacher, even if it was the laidback and lighthearted Sans. He frowned as the students descended on the older male, encircling him with mischievous faces. 

“And how do you kiddos suppose I do that?” Sans asked through a lop-sided grin. 

“You should fight Papyrus!” Suggested Hagakure. 

“Or me...” snarled Bakugo. 

The two brothers chuckled at their suggestions. Neither of which they took seriously. 

“I do not wish to fight my brother,” sighed Papyrus, peering down at his older yet shorter sibling. 

“He means, he doesn’t want to lose.” Sans smiled. 

Papyrus rolled his eyes. 

“And Bakugo, we’ve watched you two fight already. Recovery Girl will have my head if I have to send you to her again.”

“Who’s to say I’ll lose?!” The teenager barked. 

Before the argument could escalate however, Calliope stepped out of the circle. 

“I’ll fight him.” She stated casually. 

Bakugo squinted at her.

“Sans, I mean. Not you.” 

Sans laughed, clearly expecting her to be joking. But she fixed him a steely stare that caused his smile to slip and Papyrus’ to broaden. 

“Now there’s an idea!” 

“Yeah. It’s only fair! Calli has been working her butt off training with us even though she was a mentor!” Hagakure declared sassily. 

Sans looked perplexed as the class began to discuss the idea amongst themselves. There was still 15 minutes of the lesson left that Papyrus usually used to discuss any particular improvements or techniques the students could work on. But, as they’re enthusiasm for Calliope and Sans’ head to head to take place built, Papyrus was slowly losing his authority over them. Not that he was particularly trying to maintain order, as he seemed to like the idea too. 

“I don’t think this is a good idea...” Sans murmured as he sidled up to Calliope. She was visorless but made no effort to keep her eyes down. When she cast him a sidewards glance, his body tensed up in an instant. Acid-yellow eyes bore into icy-blue as she replied, “don’t be scared.” 

When her eyes finally released him, he caught his breath and blinked the dryness from his eyes. 

“Welp...” he mumbled, “don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

And Calliope was ready to wipe that grin off his face. 

The students gathered around the P.E grounds as Calliope and Sans positioned themselves at either end of the terrain. 

Papyrus paced along the sidelines with an amused expression. He had already taken Calliope aside as they made their way to the grounds and asked her if she was sure she wanted to go through with it. 

“I know you both feel like you have a lot to prove...” he had said, his arm around her shoulders as they walked. 

“But don’t get swept up by all that’s happened.”

Calliope leaned into her mentor and smiled at his obvious concern. 

“Oh. C’mon now, Russ.” She grinned, patting his chest. 

“Don’t pretend you don’t want to see me kick Sans’ ass.”

The younger sibling laughed; the sound so much brighter and louder than the way his brother laughed. 

“Well, I believe in you, Calli.” He smiled. 

The students babbled excitedly as Sans and Calliope squared up. Sans was tying up his shoelaces while Calliope stretched out her lean legs and arched her supple spine. She was dressed in the official UA P.E attire, but had removed the jacket for more manoeuvrability. The bottoms were also annoying restricting but she’d make do. 

“You two ready?” Papyrus called, his hands on his hips and his eyes flashing with excited apprehension. Calliope knew he was rooting for her. She wondered how many of the students did too. Faintly, she could make out bets between them. 

“Sans has totally got this, no offence.”

“I dunno, dude. I reckon he’ll go easy on her.” 

“She’s totally gonna own him.”

“I’m not so sure.”

Calliope nodded curtly at Papyrus’ question, keeping her eyes locked onto her opponent as she watched him flash his brother a thumbs up. Unsurprisingly, Sans kept his eyes from hers but still chose to face her. Rather than meet her stare, his line of sight trailed over her neck and shoulders. 

Calliope knew that Sans’ fight style depended on speed and precision whereas hers depended on stealth. But in this wide open space, there was nowhere for her to hide. She would have to think of a plan. And luckily for her, she had just the idea and hoped that Sans wouldn’t see it, nor her, coming. 

“Okie dokie...” Papyrus grinned, “begin!” 

But nobody moved. Sans continued to watch her from a distance, his eyes avoiding hers but training on her nonetheless. Calliope clicked her tongue, she was hoping he’d be the one to attack first. He usually was when they sparred. 

“Erm. I said begin!” Papyrus tried again, eyeing the awkward stand-off as some of the students began to laugh. 

Calliope began to pace at her end of the terrain. Between them, there was a stretch of open space around the size of a basketball court that she would have to traverse. Sans’ strength lay in his ranged attacks. During their sparring sessions, she knew his hand to hand was okay but more orientated towards deflected moves. Papyrus was the one who excelled in offensive combative techniques. Luckily for her, she’d been training hard in both.

“No time to be chivalrous, brother!” Papyrus called, tapping his foot. 

“What are you waiting for? Take him down, Calli!” Mina cried, her fist in the air. 

The two opponents continued their stalling; neither one wanting to make the first move. Calliope ceased her pacing and now let her feet march towards him. If he didn’t want to be the first to attack, she’d have to make him.

“Let’s dance, Gaster.” She called as she drew closer. 

On the other side of the terrain, Sans chuckled. The memory of him offering Calliope his hand beneath twinkling fairy lights flashed in his mind. How he’d lead her gracefully around the dance floor to the slow rhythm of a ballad...

His momentary lapse into a daydream had cost him. When his eyes refocused, Calliope was sprinting towards him and had crossed almost three quarters of the terrain. Cursing, he took a step back and raised his left hand. A blue halo engulfed it as he felt his power course through his left side. With a swipe of his arm, his sent a barrage of bones into her path. He had no intention of aiming for her. Ideally, he sought to win this battle without hurting her. Instead, he’d have to trap her somehow. 

The rapier-sharp projectiles pierced the ground just in front of her. They were longer than usual; he hoped they would block her path. But he had underestimated her agility. How could he have forgotten how well she moved? It seemed her memory loss hadn’t stripped her of her physical ability. She leapt easily over his defensive wall. And as she did, she tore one of the bones from the ground and used her momentum to throw it back towards him. The strange action took him by surprise. As his own weapon hurtled past his cheek, he stumbled. She was gaining on him. This time, his arm shot upwards and a formation of bones erupted from the earth around Calliope in a square. The cage did not trap her however. Her tactile feet must have anticipated it’s creation from the vibrations underfoot and carried her swiftly out the way. 

He cursed and leapt into the air sending a shower of large bone shards towards her in an attempt to push her back. But she was so fast. Faster than he remembered. She weaved in and out of them as they pierced the ground. As she passed one of them that had skewered in the dirt, she wrenched it free and once again threw his own weapon back towards him. This time, he anticipated her move and turned the projectile back to dust just as it threatened to slice into him. 

“Well I’ve never seen anyone do that before...” Papyrus huffed in amusement as he watched Calliope throw more and more of Sans’ missed projectiles back at him. 

None of the got anyway near him, however, as they turned back to dust with a simple wave of his hand. 

Deku watched on with curiosity shining in his eyes. Surely he wasn’t the only one who could see what Calliope was attempting? But as he looked around at his classmates, it seemed only Bakugo had worked it out too. 

The blond boy in question was smirking to himself as he watched the terrain begin to cloud with more and more dust. Calliope was using Sans to create a smokescreen for herself. 

It seemed Sans only realised her sneaky trick too little too late as she suddenly burst through the dust cloud in a whirl of bronze and matcha-green. 

As the dust settled, the class watched on excitedly as Calliope and Sans were now close enough to engage in a hand to hand battle. 

Unfamiliar to such fighting styles, Sans was immediately on the back foot. Despite his disadvantage, he managed to evade her hits seamlessly. All the while, Calliope kept her eyes locked onto his face, daring him to look at her. Wisely, he kept his attention focused on the swing of her limbs as they forced him backwards with every attempted strike. He blocked some and dodged others as Calliope grunted in frustration. 

“Fight back!” She spat. Though it seemed the only thing Sans was fighting was his own attempts not to smile. 

His blatant amusement only rattled her more. Ducking down quickly, she swiped a long leg across the ground in an attempt to take his feet out from underneath him. Infuriatingly, he hopped over it but barely dodged her other leg as she kicked it upwards towards his not-so-grinning face. That one had been close...

Her heart leapt gleefully at the sight of his surprise and used the split second to attempt a roundhouse kick. But more vibrations underfoot alerted her to his next move and she had to leap out of the way as several bones burst from the earth between them. Once again, she was pushed backwards from him and he immediately used the distance between them to launch another ranged attack. It seemed he was no longer simply humouring her as this time, the shards missed her by mere inches. She froze, unsure of whether or not she had been hit. No pain. No blood. Good. 

She looked back towards him. It looked like he too was checking her over to see if he’d gotten her. His face only showed slight concern however, his eyes still avoiding hers; left eye blazing, trademark grin distracting. 

“C’mon Calli! You almost had him!” Kaminari called from the sidelines. 

“Enough playing around already, you two!” Kirishima bellowed. 

One more attempt. 

Wiping the sweat from her brow, she charged towards him again. This time, when he sent his rapier-like bones towards her, he left her no time to throw them back. He returned them to dust the moment they passed her. The cheeky bastard was using her own technique against her. This time, it was Calliope who’s vision was obscured by the gathering dust cloud. Her eyes stung as she continued to run through it regardless. She could still vaguely make out his silhouette. He had deactivated his quirk so that his left eye and hand no longer glowed blue. It would have made her job at locating him far easier. 

But she had other senses she could depend on. Though her sore eyes could now only squint, her acute hearing made out his low laughter and soft footfalls. She’d make him pay for his cockiness. Sinking her body low to the ground to avoid another swarm of shards, the quick flash of blue somewhere to her right, she manoeuvred sideways to flank him. Though her vision was impaired, surely so was his. 

Sans amused laughter immediately vanished as he suddenly lost sight of Calliope’s silhouette. He had hoped that the dust trick she’d used on him would backfire once he turned it against her. 

Alas, it seemed he had been too confident in his abilities...or too uncaring of the outcome for, before he could turn to face the sound of approaching footsteps behind him, Calliope had already knocked him to the floor. He grunted loudly as he felt her strong limbs snaking around him. He internally cursed as he immediately recognised what she was up to. It was a move she had been practicing during their sparring sessions. Unlike those times however, she had finally managed to get him right where she wanted him thanks to the element of surprise. Before he could even attempt to break free, she had him in a perfect arm bar. With his left arm in her painful, vicelike hold, his power was rendered useless. 

Papyrus laughed gleefully from the sidelines as pain and surprise fought for dominance on his older brother’s features. Pain seemingly won as Sans grunted loudly. He fought awkwardly against Calliope’s hold, his sneakers digging into the dirt as she tightened her grip. It was a battle of strength and endurance as their two bodies writhed on the ground. 

“Ha!” Kaminari laughed, “without his left hand, he’s totally screwed!” 

Sans fingers flexed. Bakugo recognised the action. The struggling Skelebro was considering summoning one of his beast skulls. But there was no way he could use it without seriously harming both of them. Something he obviously realised a second after as his fingers stopped glowing blue. 

“Give it up, Gaster!” Calliope growled, fighting against his strong but tiring arm as she refused to relinquish her hold.

“Can it, Chloros!” He grunted back, trying to break free but failing against the pain and pressure of her grappling move. 

Despite his bravado, Sans knew he had lost. And with a defeated growl, his right hand tapped at her thigh as loud cheers erupted from the crowd of students. 

Papyrus threw back his head back and laughed triumphantly. 

“You must be getting old, brother.” He called teasingly as he strode over to his panting sibling. Calliope was already on her feet and grinning down at her defeated opponent. Sans’ white t-shirt was now caked in grime and sweat glistened on his brow. 

“25 is not old...” he grumbled, massaging his arm miserably as he sat up. 

“Then you’ve lost your touch. Mr. Could-have-been-in-the-top-10.”

Papyrus stooped and hauled his brother to his feet. 

“And don’t think you can pull the whole ‘I went easy on her’ crap’” Kirishima chortled as the Americans rejoined the class on the sidelines. 

Sans continued to roll his aching shoulder. 

“To be honest, I think she went easy on me. I thought she was going to break my arm.”

“I considered it.” Calliope replied playfully at his side. “But I wanted to try one of your famed chocolate cakes this weekend.”

And when Papyrus wrapped his arms around the two of them, Calliope felt the strangest sense of Deja-Vu wash over her.


	21. Sweet Like Chocolate

That evening, after showering and changing into her lounge wear, Calliope knocked on the door to the Skelebros’ room. 

It was Russ who greeted her, dressed in his usual evening attire of a t-shirt and striped pyjama bottoms. He welcomed her into their room that smelt of men’s aftershave, freshly brewed tea and-

“Is that chocolate cake?” Calliope asked, the decadent aroma filling her nose. She’d already brushed her teeth but, as her eyes fell on the sleek, glossy surface of the ganache covered confectionary in question, she knew she’d have to do it again. 

“Heh, sniffed it out already hm?” Sam’s voice came from the bathroom. 

“Sato kindly let Sam use his baking appliances,” Russ smiled, pouring Calliope a steaming cup of white tea and handing it to her as they both settled down in the comfy chairs in front of the window. 

Outside, the last of the suns rays were draining slowly from the sky. It looked like it was going to be a clear night. Stars were beginning to appear and the crickets had already begun their nightly chorus. 

“So, shall we eat cake before, after or during our talk?” Russ asked, sipping his tea as he crossed his long legs at the ankles. Sam came and perched at the end of his bed as there were only two armchairs in the room. He turned his light eyes on Calliope. 

“That’s up to, Calli.”

Of course, she wanted it right away. As they sat and ate the indulgent dessert, Calliope took the time to go over everything she had planned to say. They had gathered in the Skelebros room to discuss the future of their team. It mostly came down to what Calliope desired to do. While she was in the shower, she had thought long and hard about what it was she wanted. It was all still so surreal to her. It had been almost a month since she had woken up from her petrification and, according to the Skelebros, almost 5 months since they first arrived in Japan. 

Back in America, their shared apartment lay empty and the media had begun to investigate the prolonged absence of one of America’s favourite hero teams. Of course, the news of Calliope’s incident had reached all the major networks. And that’s when the rumours and speculations had begun to spread. As usual, the Skelebros refused to speak to the Media and strongly suggested that Calliope avoid peeking at any of the articles that were beginning to surface. But of course, she couldn’t help herself and had scanned through some late one night. 

None were particularly cruel but some did hint at the fact that Calliope’s quirk may be too unpredictable for her to continue as a hero. Other articles focused more on her supposed relationship with her two mentors. She cringed as she read how some journalists suspected a love triangle between them, or some form of unprofessional mentor/apprentice relationship. No wonder the brothers hated interacting with the media. She had closed her laptop soon after. 

The conversation over the cake was light and cheerful. They joked over Calliope’s victory over Sam and Papyrus shared stories about how he and his brother would play fight as children. Sam would always let his younger sibling win. At least that’s what he kept saying while Russ shook his head laughing. 

Soon enough, however, talk had to finally turn to more serious matters; the real reason why they had gathered together so late in the evening. 

“I know it’s been tough on you Calli.”

“Tough being an understatement.”

“But, as you know, our home is in America and we have to decide our next course of action.” 

Calliope looked from one brother to the next, her spoon toying idly with the few crumbs of chocolate cake left on her plate. 

“What are our options?” She asked, placing it on the coffee table in front of her. 

Russ hummed in thought and uncrossed his legs. 

“Well, there are a few choices. The three of us can either stay here for a while longer and continue your training within UA, or we can travel back to America and finish your training there with Sam and I as your sole mentors again.” 

Calliope sighed as Sam continued.

“Or, you can always choose to go down your own path. You certainly proved you’re more than capable.”

Calliope frowned. Did he mean leaving the team and going solo? No, that was never an option for her. Growing up, Calliope had never known the love and support of a family. She had accidentally killed her own father and was disowned by her own mother. She had grown up in an orphanage and it was only thanks to the kindness of one of the carers that she had gotten on the right path towards an education at Juggernaut. Although, Calliope had often suspected that the carer was in fact scared of her and chose to send her away to the school in order to keep the other children safe from her quirk. 

Regardless, it was only after waking up from her petrification and hearing all about how she had achieved a family-like unit with the Skelebros and a blossoming career as a pro hero that she finally found hope. Despite losing her memory of it all, to know she had once been truly happy and accepted was motivation enough to keep trying. Her mentors, her friends, her new found family hadn’t given up on her so neither would she. 

“What ever happens, I don’t want to leave you.” She spoke, trying not to sound weak. It didn’t help that she wasn’t wearing her visor and had to keep her eyes averted when she addressed them. 

But even from her downward stare, she could still make out the two brothers exchange a glance with one another. They were both smiling affectionately. 

“We’re glad to hear that, Calli.” Russ cooed, and he took her by the shoulder from across the table. 

“I don’t think Sam and I would feel much like a team without you alongside us anymore.”

Calliope grunted a laugh, her head tilting heedlessly against his hand as it continued to squeeze her shoulder. When her cheek touched the back of it, he turned it over to cup her face gently. 

“And for the record...” he smiled, his thumb caressing her jawline, “we don’t consider you as our apprentice. Even after everything that’s happened and even though you may feel like you’ve been hurtled backwards, you’ve come so far...”

She tried not to cry. Luckily, he withdrew his hand and sat back into his chair.

“You’re our teammate and our friend. And over these past few months, we both agree that you’ve taught us just as much as we’ve taught you.” 

Calliope sniffed and wished she had her visor to hide behind. And when she felt Sam’s cool hand on her arm, she couldn’t hold back her tears any longer. 

Funnily enough, this was one of the few times she’d actually cried during the whole ordeal. And this time, it was tears of happiness that she dabbed away with the napkin Sam had handed to her. 

“You’re an inspiration, Calli.” Sam uttered gently. He was now perched on the arm of her chair, his hand placed softly on her head as she leaned against him. 

“Whatever you want to do, we’ll support you.” 

She nodded her head as it rested under his arm. Russ was still smiling opposite her. 

“So cheer up!” Sam chimed, replacing his gentle embrace with an amicable shake. 

“Enough of this soppy crap. Let’s talk business, hm?” 

Calliope gave a small laugh as she wiped away the last of her tears. Russ leaned forwards, his hands clasped in front of him. 

“So, your orders please, Miss?”

Heaving a breath to steady her voice, Calliope told the brothers of her desire to remain in Japan a little while longer; she was not quite ready to leave everyone behind. 

Her memory loss had taken her back to a very lonely and stressful time of her life. She had woken up from her petrification believing she was still 21 years old, friendless and about to take her final exams. Since waking up to discover she was in fact 22, popular and about to finish her apprenticeship with the pro-hero duo the Skelebros however, she had only felt love and support from everyone around her. She wasn’t ready to leave that all behind so soon. 

Of course, the Skelebros understood and reassured her that they were earning enough money from teaching at UA to extend their stay in Japan. As for their home in America, the rent on their apartment was paid off for the rest of the year anyway and Russ’ old mentor Undyne the Undying had kindly offered to take care of the place in their absence. Their many houseplants would thankfully all survive. 

“So, that settles it. We’ll continue your training here at UA until the end of term.” Russ declared cheerily. 

“Sounds perfect; so long as I can still eat cake.” Calliope retorted and helped herself to another slice. The cups of tea had been replaced by flutes of champagne. Sam had been keeping a bottle under his bed. It was meant to be for their last night, but it had lay forgotten after the farewell party. There hadn’t been a cause to celebrate after that...

“Of course, so long as you promise to never get me in an arm-bar again,” Sam smirked. He rolled his left shoulder as Calliope and Russ chuckled. 

And the laughter and jokes continued late into the night, the chocolate cake didn’t stand a chance.


	22. Courage and Closure

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Super Soft Bakugo Alert

By the time Calliope woke up Saturday morning, it was already past noon. She and the Skelebros had eaten cake and drank champagne til the early hours of the morning. The last thing she remembered was dozing against Sam as they sat together against his headboard listening to music through shared headphones. But considering she had woken up in her own bed, he must have carried her back to her room. Surprisingly, she wasn’t embarrassed by the thought. 

After washing and dressing, she knocked on the brothers’ door and informed them that she’d have to skip brunch. 

“I’ve just got to go and speak to one of the students about something,” she told Sam and Russ as they lounged lazily in the midday, sunlit room. They were both in their underwear and Calliope had to refrain from giggling; they looked like a pair of teenagers. 

They didn’t pry into her afternoon plans, much to her appreciation and simply told her to text them when she fancied grabbing a bite to eat. 

“We can all head into the city later.” Sam yawned, dressed in nothing but boxer shorts and pink slippers. She didn’t know which to comment on first; his footwear or his scar. The old Calliope had surely heard both explanations before- she couldn’t help but feel a little silly when she mentioned it anyway. 

“GasterBlaster Disaster...” he stated, pointing at his scarred chest, “undeniable comfort.” He finished, pointing at his slippers. 

Calliope blinked. He grinned and promised to retell her the full story again over dinner later.

She snorted a laugh, shaking her head as she closed the door. Though it would have been easy to mope about her memory loss, Calliope couldn’t help but enjoy the fact she could relive meeting the Skelebros all over again. 

The student she intended to speak to was Kirishima; she still wanted to follow her hunch that Bakugo was withholding information from her. As she wandered the corridors to the boys’ dorms, feeling extremely awkward and out of place, she questioned why she insisted on perusing her suspicions. In the end, she put it down to mere curiosity. There was a lot of mystery surrounding the incident. No one seemed to know what had happened to have triggered her quirk to react in such a way. All she and the Skelebros knew was that it would have had to have been something traumatic. Why then, did she want to find out so badly? Did she really want to know what it was that had happened? In truth, yes. Because to not know would plague her forever. In some sense, to find out would give her closure. 

Just then, the sound of a door opening snapped her out of her inner monologue. 

“Hey Calli, you need something?” Asked Kaminari brightly as his blond head poked into the corridor. 

“Oh, hey there, Kaminari.” She replied sweetly, she had always had a soft spot for the class goof. 

“I’m actually looking for Kirishima. Do you know which room is his?” 

Another door opened and Iida appeared. He politely informed her that she was on the wrong floor and that she needed to go up the stairs. It was Kaminari who offered to take her there first. 

As they scaled the staircase, the electric-wielding student chatting merrily to her. He told her how happy he was to hear that she and the Skelebros would be staying a bit longer and he complimented her skills during her fight with Sans. 

“How’s he holding up anyway? It’s good to see him smiling again. We were all worried about him at one point.” He babbled as they arrived on the 4th floor. 

“He’s doing great.” Calliope replied with a smile. She was already aware of Sam’s downward spiral during her absence; Russ had been the one to tell her. So she made no comment at Kaminari’s mention of it. 

“That’s good to hear! And it’s great to see you smiling again too! We all missed you!”

Calliope’s smile widened. He was such a sweet boy, it was hard not to feel cheery in his presence. He walked her right to Kirishima’s door and bid her farewell. She waited until he had descended the stairs again before knocking. 

It took her three attempts before the red-haired teenager came to door. He must have been working out to music or something because his vest was covered in sweat. 

“Oh, hey Calli!” He greeted, his face housing delightful surprise. 

“Hey,” she smiled back. 

“I er-I was wondering if I could talk to you about something...” She suddenly felt rather intrusive. But Kirishima only beamed and opened his door wide to let her enter.

Unsurprisingly, his room boasted masculinity. 

“‘Scuse the mess,” he commented bashfully, kicking a few books under his bed. 

As her eyes took in the decor, Calliope was reminded of the youngest Skelebro, Russ. Though she could no longer remember what his room back in America looked like, this is how she imagined it to be. She then wondered briefly what her own room must look like...

“So what did you need?” Kirishima asked, halting her train of thought. He had plonked himself down on his desk chair and draped a towel across the back of his neck. 

Calliope turned on the spot, not quite sure what to do with herself. Should she sit on his bed? When he gestured with his hand, she took that as a ‘yes’ and perched lightly at the place opposite him. 

“I was actually wondering if you could tell me something...” she said with a small smile that didn’t quite mask her nerves. 

“Sure, shoot!” He chimed back, flashing her a toothy, encouraging grin. He swerved left and right on his desk chair as he patiently waited for her to continue.

“Well. It’s about the day I turned to stone.” 

At her words, Kirishima’s smile wavered and his movements stilled. 

“Oh.”

Heaving a sigh, she pressed on. 

“I know you and some other students were there. And...” she scratched nervously beneath her visor, “and I was wondering if you could tell me what happened- what you saw.”

The boy looked hesitant, his eyes trying to search hers but unable to penetrate the visor that shielded him from her quirk. 

“What I saw?” He repeated, slow and steady.

Calliope nodded. The silence that followed prompted him to speak. Carefully, making sure to pause before each sentence to gather his thoughts, he recalled how Yaoyorozu had alerted the class to the news. They had all gathered around the T.V and were later joined by the Skelebros. The brothers had then rushed off to find Calli. Kirishima, Deku, Ochako, Mina and Bakugo had followed. 

“So you all just stayed at the fountain until the teachers arrived?” Calliope inquired, hoping she didn’t sound too obvious. She was fishing for one detail in particular; one that confirmed her hunch was indeed correct. 

“Yeah...” Kirishima quipped, then paused again. 

“Well, Bakugo took off somewhere-“

I knew it.

“Where?” Calliope asked, trying to keep the eagerness from her voice.

But before the red-haired teen could answer, there was a loud knock at the door. The person on the other side didn’t wait for an answer and let themselves inside. They were met with Bakugo’s scowling face as his lean body appeared in the doorway. 

“Oh hey, man!” Kirishima called, a slight timid tinge to his greeting. He had after-all just been talking about his explosive, blonde friend. Had he overheard? 

“Calli. Did you want to ask me something?” Bakugo asked gruffly. 

His eyes fixed her with a steely stare, one that was not too dissimilar from when he’d stare down an opponent. The teenager was challenging her to try and act coy. They both knew why she was in Kirishima’s room. Calliope suddenly felt quite guilty for her slyness. 

Kirishima’s eyes shifted from Calliope to Bakugo and back. Before he could drag out the awkward silence any longer, Calliope spoke up. 

“As a matter of fact, I did.” 

Pushing to her feet she threw a curt nod at the red-haired boy who still looked rather perplexed by Bakugo’s intrusion. 

“Thanks for the chat, Kirishima. Enjoy your weekend.”

When she gave him her best smile, his shoulders eased. 

“Anytime, Calli!” 

He bid Bakugo an enthusiastic ‘see ya later!’ as the blond turned to leave without another word. 

Closing the door to Kirishima’s room behind her, she locked eyes again with Bakugo who stood with his hands in his pockets at the far end of the corridor. He jerked his head in a silent gesture for her to join him, his expression a deep frown. 

Straightening her spine in an effort to steel herself, she stepped over to him. He turned and lent against the wall, she did the same, then he addressed her in his usual grumble. 

“So, you wanna know what happened that day, huh.” It was more of a statement than a question. 

Calliope cast him a sidewards stare. 

“I know you know something no one else does.” She said, her voice low and her lids lowered behind her visor. “You saw something, didn’t you?” 

Bakugo grunted and turned his face from hers. There was something peculiar about his expression. It seemed as though he were reliving something. What was it he had seen? There was anger in his glassy eyes. But not the usual burning anger that she was so used to seeing when she observed him during training. But one tinged with, what looked like, sadness? The longer she watched him as she waited for a response, the more his scowling face seemed to slump. 

“Are you sure you want to know?” He grumbled, his eyes still staring down the empty corridor. For a brief moment, those eyes softened. But when he turned them back towards her, their naturally intense ferocity had returned. 

“I have to,” Calliope said, her voice quiet but confident. This was a private conversation after all. 

A low growl rumbled in Bakugo’s throat as he flexed his shoulders, giving him the appearance of someone about to attempt a particularly challenging feat of strength.

“Fine,” He grunted. 

Casting one last look down the corridor to make sure no one was around to eavesdrop, he relayed his information to her.

“While everyone was distracted by the scene Sans and Papyrus were making at the fountain...” he began, ignoring the flash of hurt in Calliope’s eyes, “I followed the trail of statues.”

So he had retraced her last steps...

“They lead me to your visor.” At this, he reached inside the bag he was holding and pulled out the item in question. He handed it to her with a grave expression. 

Calliope took it form him with a tentative hand. She had only ever seen her trademark viper-head visor in photographs the Skelebros had shown her. It was far more sophisticated in design than the one Yaoyorozu had made for her. However, it was badly damaged; a large crack ran straight down the front of it. The decorative scales that so accurately matched her own were deeply scuffed. She continued to turn it over in her hands as Bakugo went on. 

“I found it at the mouth of an alley way. From what I could tell, there’d been some sort of a struggle.” 

When she raised her head to look at him, she saw his hard eyes watching her. They were gauging her reaction, silently inquiring if she were certain she wanted him to go on. If he could have seen hers concealed behind her unbroken visor, he would have known the answer. Instead, her firm nod willed him to proceed. 

“I followed the alleyway to the end and found three more statues.”

Now it was time for Calliope to frown. Only 9 statues, including herself, had been accounted for. All but 2 had been restored. Mouth dry, she awaited Bakugo’s explanation. 

“They were men. Probably around your age. Maybe older. They were on their knees...”

Calliope felt her head begin to dip. 

“...two of the men looked like they’d been holding someone down. I found a blindfold next to them.”

Her heart sunk. Her breath hitched. He continued. 

“The other had his belt undone.”

A small whimper escaped her. Her fingers gripped at her broken visor. The silence that followed granted her a moment to compose herself. Bakugo didn’t need to go into any more detail for her to understand what had happened. Cruelly, her mind flashed back to the image of her belligerent father slamming her petite mother against a wall. She heard her screams and pleas for him to stop. He too had reached for his belt. History had a sickening way of repeating itself. 

“You wanted to know.” Bakugo said finally, as he watched Calliope valiantly hold back her tears. 

A slow nod of her head was all she could manage. 

“And what happened to the statues after you found them?” She asked, her voice barely above a whisper. 

Bakugo pushed off the wall with his foot and took a few steps down the corridor. 

“They’re gone.” 

And he needn’t say more for Calliope to understand. 

“You didn’t have to do that,” she called softly to him as he began to walk away. 

He paused and turned his head to look part way over his shoulder. His eyes were hooded and his jaw locked. 

“Well I did.”

It took every inch of her will-power not to approach him and take his hand. Always such a brave-faced and hardy boy, Bakugo never showed any sign of weakness. But Calliope couldn’t help but wonder how hard it must be to carry around that kind of knowledge at such a young age. The knowledge that you’d wiped three people from the face of the earth. Yes they were criminals, but people nonetheless. Calliope had carried that same guilt with her since childhood after she had turned her father to stone. He too, had been an evil and violent man. But that didn’t stop her from feeling that sickening weight in her stomach every time she pictured his frozen face. She didn’t know what became of his body but knew for certain that he ceased to exist. 

Bakugo was now at his dorm room door with his hand on the handle. 

“Bakugo!” She called, causing him to pause. 

When she made towards him, his fingers twitched and she feared he was just going to turn the handle and slam the door in her face. But he remained. 

“Thank you for not telling anyone.” She whispered when she reached his side. 

He grunted his acknowledgement and then left her in the empty corridor, her broken visor still clutched in her hands.


	23. Scales, Bones, Feathers

After her conversation with Bakugo, Calliope decided she was in need of some fresh air. Iced-tea and a spot of sun-bathing called to her. On her way back outside, she made the last minute decision to pop into the department of support. Perhaps the students there could repair her broken visor. Though the replacement Yaoyorozu had made her was okay, she missed the serpent-like design of her old one. Russ had even mentioned that it had voice command that alternated the use of her quirk. Yaoyorozu’s creation simply blocked her quirk entirely. 

After dropping her broken head-gear off with a scarily enthusiastic girl in goggles, Calliope meandered slowly into town. As her footsteps carried her across the campus and into the hustle and bustle of the city, her mind began to wander. Everything Bakugo had told her circled in her thoughts. His story had granted her closure but at the cost of a heavy heart. Though she now knew what had happened to her, due to the fact she couldn’t remember the ordeal, she strangely felt nothing. What had been a traumatic experience resembled nothing more than a disturbing tale one might read in the pages of a newspaper. 

Still, her thoughts continued to hold her in a trance as her steps came to a halt at none other than the very location she had turned to stone. When her eyes finally slipped back into focus, her own visored-face was staring back at her from the rippling water in the fountain. She was vaguely aware that passers-by were casting her curious glances; they clearly recognised her and were bemused to see her standing. Everyone seemed to have grown used to the sight of the statue of a crying woman decorating the fountain. To then see that same woman on her feet must have been quite odd. 

“Well, isn’t this a surprise!” came an unfamiliar voice from behind. 

It startled her and she turned awkwardly on the spot, her long hair flying about her. 

“Didn’t think I’d ever see you move!”

Clutching at her heart, her eyes fell upon two men, both of whom she recognised though she was far more familiar with one than the other. 

A bashful Tokoyami stood next to a man she never thought she’d get to meet in person. He was smiling kindly at her with a casual demeanour that reminded her of Sam. 

When Calliope failed to speak due to the fact she was actually quite starstruck, Tokoyami filled the awkward silence that followed. 

“Good afternoon, Calliope.” The raven-like boy greeted in his usual formal tone. 

Before she could return the student’s greeting however, the hero known as Hawks spoke again. 

“Ah yeah, Calliope. That’s it! It’s nice to finally meet you in the flesh!” 

Another look of upmost despair washed over Tokoyami, his dark features unable to hide his sheepish reaction to his mentor’s tactlessness. 

“And you must be Hawks,” she commented politely, trying to hide her awe-stricken comportment. 

Though she had grown up in America, Calliope had followed this particular Japanese hero’s rise to fame while she studied at Juggernaut. This was mainly due to the fact that, as a teenager, she had had an enormous crush on him. He had come into fame when they were both 18 years old. Though they were now both 22, he had already achieved so much more than her. She couldn’t help but feel a little daunted in his presence, even if he was smiling cheerily at her. And when she caught his eye, her teenage infatuations came flooding back. 

“Oh you’ve heard of me?” He grinned, cocking his head, “I’m flattered.”

He then held out a hand and her mind squealed as she took it. She didn’t think she’d be such a fan-girl, yet she couldn’t calm the butterflies in her stomach. 

“I’m just dropping Tokoyami here back off at UA.” 

The boy in question gave a subtle bow. So The Jet Black Hero was training with Hawks? It made sense. But how had she not known this until now? 

“Say, are your mentors still here? You are still the Skelebros apprentice, right? That’s awesome.” 

Calliope could only smile through his seemingly one sided conversation. Honestly, she could have stood and watched him babble away for hours; he was even more handsome in person. As soon as that thought crossed her mind, however, she remembered the feeling of Sam’s arms around her and instantly felt a wave of guilt wash over her. 

Clearing her throat, she replied as conversationally as possible; 

“Yeah, Sans and Papyrus are here too. We’ll be staying at UA til the end of term.”

“Nice. So I guess I’ll be seeing you around then?” He said with a ruffle of his wings. 

He pointed a finger towards her, head tilting again as he raised his brows expectantly. 

Calliope couldn’t hold back the blush that crept into her cheeks as she nodded, “yeah, sure. Of course.” And she hated herself for how lame she sounded. 

It had taken her a good 15 minutes to regain her composure after Tokoyami and Hawks had left. Honestly, she wasn’t quite sure what had come over her. She had acted like an enamoured teenage girl. Images of Mina and Ochako filled her mind. It was only when her phone had begun to vibrate in her handbag that she had come back to her senses. A photo of her and Sam flashed on her screen which only made her feel worse as she dragged her finger across his face to answer the call. 

“Heya, Calli,” Sam’s voice sounded down the line, “you still in town?” 

Calliope confirmed and then accepted his offer to meet him and Russ at a chosen restaurant. 

By the time she reached the sushi bar, the moment by the fountain with Hawks, and all the embarrassment that came with it, had long passed. When she rounded a corner to see her two teammates already sat in the window, she was positively beaming from ear to ear. 

As they sat and ate, she told them about her meeting with Japan’s number 2 hero. 

“Ah yes!” Russ exclaimed as he fought with his piece of sushi; he still hadn’t gotten used to using chopsticks and resorted to using his fingers. 

“Tokoyami did mention he had been training with him for a while now. It’s a very clever match up, if you ask me.” 

Calliope dabbed her tuna roll into some wasabi as she nodded her agreement. 

“Yeah, he seems nice.” 

She failed to notice that Sam had momentarily stopped chewing and changed the subject as she remembered something. 

“Oh, and by the way...”

The two brothers raised their eyes to her. The piece of sushi Russ was attempting to hold fell back onto his dish with a dull thud. Sam was gnawing on the straw of his drink. 

“Someone turned my old visor in this morning.”

The news caused both of her teammates to raise their eyebrows. 

“Really? Who?”

Hesitating, Calliope toyed with her soy sauce, poking at its dark surface with her chopstick. The Skelebros, along with everyone else other than herself and Bakugo, remained unaware about what had really happened to her on that fateful day. She thought it best for everyone to keep it that way. 

“Not sure. It was just left outside the dorms.” 

She had never been a good liar and the way the two brothers narrowed their eyes at her confirmed that. 

“Calli...” Russ began, drawing out each syllable of her name, “that visor could be a clue towards-“

“Glad you got it back, Calli.” Sam interrupted, placing his drink back down on the table, the straw now chewed beyond further use. 

The younger sibling sighed in frustration and, although Calliope felt bad, she was thankful that Sam had cut across Russ’ incoming lecture. 

At this point, she just wanted to be done with it all and focus on moving on. Luckily for her, her two teammates respected her decision to drop the subject. Though Russ lapsed into silence for the next 15 minutes, Sam and Calliope reeled him back into their conversation by the time dessert came around. 

Over the next few weeks, the three of them fell into a comfortable routine that flowed seamlessly from teaching in the afternoon, to training in the evenings and socialising on the weekends. 

Now that Calliope had her old, trademark visor back, they looked and felt like a pro-hero team again. Additionally, they even fought like a team again and had assisted some of the Japanese heroes combat villains in the city. 

The hero Hawks, in particular, seemed to have taken a shine to Calliope, much to her disbelief. Anytime their paths crossed on campus, usually when he was escorting Tokoyami back to UA, he would always greet her. Their conversations had grown gradually longer as the weeks drew on. Tokoyami soon knew not to linger once they got talking and would take himself back to the dorms while Hawks and Calliope continued their jovial exchange. One time, he had complimented her newly restored visor and she had let him try it on at his request. She had taken his beneath her arm and laughed at his ridiculous attempt at a snake impression. When she swiped her visor back from him, her eyes had accidentally caught his. As her quirk took a hold of him, his large wings had twitched awkwardly, feathers drifting lazily to the ground. Though Calliope had apologised profusely as she hastily pulled her viper-head back on, Hawks had simply laughed it off. 

“And I thought no one could ever keep me still!” 

“Please don’t tell me you’re spying on her, Sans!”

Mina’s exclamation had caused the eldest Skelebro to turn quickly from his spot by the window.

“What?” He retorted, annoyed by how much higher his voice had sounded in that instant. He cleared his throat as Mina’s bemused face continued to regard him. 

He was stood on the second floor corridor of the main UA building where he had been on his way to meet with All Might. The former number 1 hero had suggested they take lunch together to talk about their experiences in America. Part way on his short journey across campus, however, Sam’s eyes had fallen on a familiar scene; one that had been troubling him increasingly the more times he witnessed it. Calliope was once again laughing openly with the Winged Hero Hawks down by the main entrance. Once again standing noticeably close to him and talking noticeably loud...

“Really, Sans!” Mina huffed, her foot tapping, “Are you seriously jealous about Calli talking to Hawks?” 

Sam furrowed his brow. 

“Course not. She’s a grown woman...” his eyes drifted mindlessly back to the scene below them. Calliope had just shoved Hawks’ arm playfully. 

“She can talk to whoever she wants.” 

He felt his face fall as he said this; neither his expression nor his voice aiding his attempts at falsity. 

“Dude, Hawks stole your girl, that’s rough.” Came Kaminari’s playfully taunting voice from down the corridor. More of the students were making their way towards the cafeteria. 

“I mean, he is the number two hero after-all.” This time it was Sero’s turn to rib the frowning American. Sam turned his squinting eyes from the window to the small group of students who had gathered beside him. 

“I bet you regret not pursuing your goal to become one of the top 10 heroes now, huh?” Sero jived, knocking Sam with one of his large elbows. The older male grunted and forced his hands to remain in his jacket pockets despite his temptation to flick the teen’s ear. 

“Hey man, not cool!” Came yet another voice. 

Didn’t these kids have somewhere to be? 

It was Kirishima. The red-haired boy had taken Sero and Kaminari by the backs of the neck. 

“Ah, we were only playing!” The blond whined, his shoulders hunched beneath Kirishima’s firm grip as he lead them both away. 

Mina cast Sam another branding look before shaking her head and walking after them. 

When Sam turned back to the window, Calliope and Hawks had gone and All Might was surely waiting for him. 

Later that evening, after tutoring Class 1A through a gruelling set of agility courses lead by Calliope, the team of American heroes returned to their dorms early. Usually, Friday evenings were spent in the city where they would try a new restaurant and hit a few bars. On this occasion however, Russ had declared himself too tired to leave his bed and had promptly fallen asleep without even taking a bite of his store-bought sandwich. 

For a while, Sam had lain awake listening to his younger sibling snore. Normally, it was Sam who would fall asleep first leaving Russ to complain about his snoring the following morning. He made a mental note to inform him of their shared nighttime habit the next day. 

As he lay staring up at the ceiling, debating whether or not to make himself an only child, a soft knock sounded at their door. Quietly, he rolled out of bed and grabbed a pair sweatpants as he made his way over to it through the gloom. After clumsily jumping into his bottoms, he pulled the door open just a fraction and was surprised to be greeted by a visorless Calliope. She had braided her hair into a long plait that was slung gracefully over her shoulder like some sort of green python. 

“Hey, Sam.” She whispered, peeking behind him at Russ’ sleeping silhouette. 

“Did I wake you?” Her face fell into a concerned frown, her eyes doing their usually trick of dropping to the floor. Though he knew she did this to prevent any risk of her quirk taking effect on him, Sam still couldn’t help but think she looked timid as she stood and waited for a reply with her gaze fixed on his socks and slippers. At least, she did until she started smirking at them. 

“Na. Why, what’s up?” He asked quietly, opening the door wider and also smirking at how amusing she found his footwear. 

Her serpent-like eyes jumped to his lips; another one of her habits. Again, she did this to avoid meeting his eyes, but Sam sometimes wondered if there was another reason behind it. Wishful thinking, of course. 

“Couldn’t sleep...” she murmured. And this time she did look sheepish. One hand toyed with the silken fabric of her nightdress; a simple garment in a shade of rose-gold. 

“I thought I’d come see if you wanted to take a walk with me or something.” 

Sam smiled. It suddenly felt like Christmas morning. 

“Sure. It’s a nice evening for it.” 

After grabbing a jacket to throw over his bare torso and wriggling his feet into his sneakers, he joined Calliope in the corridor. 

She had wrapped herself in an oversized cardigan and wore leather boots on her feet. The overall image was reminiscent of a farmer’s daughter ready to sneak out to the creek for a late night dip without her siblings noticing. And when Sam quietly closed the door to a snoring Russ behind him and Calliope slipped her arm through his, the sentiment only swelled.

They walked the corridors quietly and only began to talk once they were greeted by the cool night air. It wasn’t that late, but the campus was already quiet. Juggernaut was never this tranquil. Especially on a Friday night such as this, with the moon full and the sky clear. The hallways and campus streets would always be full of students on the prowl, ready to blow off steam. Though there were strict rules about what could take place on campus, many of the students would still find ways to satisfy their need to cut loose. Both Sam and Russ Gaster had been serious students; with a father like theirs, there was no other option than to be. But that didn’t mean that, on occasion, they didn’t seize an opportunity to sneak off to a party or ride their bikes to the beach late at night. 

It was fun to reminisce those days, but even better to relive them...

“Thank you for saving me from one of Russ’ lectures the other day, by the way.” Calliope said as they turned into the moonlit courtyard. Ever since Calliope had mentioned the return of her old visor, the story of how it came to be back in her possession remain an unspoken subject. Though it had happened weeks ago, no one had yet brought it up. 

“Heh. No problem, Calli.” He smiled as they came to a stop beneath the shadow of an archway. But when he turned to her, his face adopted a look of concern. 

“But you know, if you ever do want to talk about-“

His body froze. She had caught him with her eyes which remained shockingly bright even in the gloom. 

“It’s better I keep the knowledge for myself.” She said firmly, as her quirk continued to silence him. 

“But I appreciate your concern.” She gently touched her fingers to his face before dipping her eyes back to his lips. How he wished she wouldn’t...

So much so that, even after she’d released him from her paralysing stare, his body still ceased to relax fully. 

“So long as you’re sure,” he managed, debating whether or not he too should reach for her. But she’d already turned to walk into the centre of the courtyard. The sound of her boots on the stone floor was the only thing that could be heard. Sam watched quietly from the shadows as Calliope tilted her head skywards. One hand reached up and traced a constellation. 

“You studied astronomy, right Sam?” She asked, as her fingers continued to dance along the stars. He didn’t remember telling her this detail, perhaps Russ had told her. 

“I sure did,” he replied, leaning against the cool stone of the archway. “My dad thought it would help towards my quantum physics studies.” 

Calliope laughed softly. 

“What’s so funny?” He asked, smirking at her amusement. 

She turned and walked back to him, the moonlight catching on her shimmering nightdress. The sight was serenely enchanting. 

“Just picturing you alongside Dr Gaster...It’s hard to believe that man is your father.” 

Sam grunted a laugh as Calliope came to lean against the other side of the arch. 

“Trust me, no one finds it quite as unbelievable as Russ and I.” 

“And why quantum physics?”

Sam shrugged a shoulder lazily, his lip twitching. 

“Dad was always fascinated by it. He wanted to pass on his love for parallel universes and alternate timelines to his eldest son.” He grinned impishly.

“Too bad that turned out to be me.” 

Although Sam had once shared his father’s enthusiasm for that particular branch of science, he had soon abandoned his studies to pursue his goal to become a pro-hero. It was hard to focus on saving the world when your research encouraged a nihilist outlook on life. When he explained this to Calli, she simply smiled then asked;

“And what made you want to become a hero?” 

She had already asked him this question before her memory loss. It had not been long into her apprenticeship with them. He and his brother had both jokingly told her it had been for money and fame, but this time around Sam decided to give her the real reason. 

With a sigh, he cast his eyes to the moon and said, “our mom.” 

When Calliope followed his answer with confused silence, he continued. 

“We hoped that, if one day we both became big heroes, she’d finally come looking for us.” 

When he turned back to look at her, his face housing a tired smile, Calliope was frowning sadly at the ground. 

“You didn’t know your mom?” She asked, her voice quiet. 

“Na,” he replied casually, scratching the back of his neck idly. “She left when we were really young. Dad never told us why.” 

Calliope continued to stare forlornly at the floor.

“But never mind, eh?” He chimed, “I have you and Russ. And Dad still answer my calls on the rare occasion I need reminding what a terrible prodigy I am.” 

This made Calliope laugh and she leaned in to swat at his arm. 

“Oh, stop!” She chuckled, “I’m sure your dad is super proud of you both.”

Sam smirked. She was right, of course. Despite all his joking, he knew how much his father did indeed support his sons’ decision to become heroes. A typed letter would arrive at the start of every season with a brief paragraph formally congratulating them on their achievements. Though the printed words lacked warmth, the sentiment still remained. 

“You’ll have to meet him one day,” Sam declared, nudging her boot with his foot. 

“I’d love to!” She replied, with a closed-eye smile. 

“And you should come and meet Hawks one day too!” She suggested happily. “He’s been pestering me about meeting you and your brother.” 

Sam felt his face crumple into a frown before he could catch himself. 

“What?” Calliope asked, her eyes narrowing. Her gaze trailed along his jawline as he rearranged his features into a look of indifference. 

“Nothing,” he retorted. But she was already leaning in closer, a sly expression housed upon her face. 

“Oh Sam...” she crooned mischievously, “I didn’t take you as the jealous type.” 

She brought her face close to his and made an obvious display at searching it for a reaction. 

His lips pulled into a lazy grin and his eyes rolled upwards as she continued her silent scrutiny. 

A flash of teeth. A playful smile. The tantalising scent of jasmine. Had it not been he who had bought her that perfume? 

“And I didn’t take him as your type.” Sam countered with a mock sneer. Although, perhaps there was some truth to those words. 

A gentle laugh. The brush of a hand. When he chanced a look at her, he caught her looking at his lips again. Perhaps because she was so dangerously close now.

Or perhaps not close enough...

Whatever the reason, she continued to keep her eyes from his when she responded with;

“What? Charming, handsome and successful?” She gave a cheeky grin, her moonlit eyes travelling to the small amount of bare chest visible beneath his jacket. 

“You’re right, if that was my type...” she placed a finger against his skin; he sighed at her touch. 

“...I’d have fallen for your brother too.”

He snorted a laugh. She did so too, her head falling against his shoulder as they both chuckled at her audacious joke. 

“I see...” Sam murmured through a half-smile. 

“So you’ve fallen for Hawks, have you?” As he said this, his hand found its way to her hip. 

With a quiet scoff, she raised her head from his shoulder. Her eyes were closed when she uttered;

“No, you bone-head...” And when she opened them again, her gaze immediately went to his lips. 

“I was talking about you.”

The subtle smell of jasmine was intoxicating. It caught in this throat and threatened to snatch at his breath as he inhaled deeply. But Sam kept his voice an easy drawl when he responded with;

“I’m both flattered and insulted that you’ve fallen for my repulsive, unattractive and unsuccessful self.” 

When she laughed, her body seem to settle further into his. 

“I’m a woman of standards, what can I say?” 

When she smiled, he took her by the chin. 

“You don’t need to say anything...” 

When she glanced his smirking lips once more, he guided her face closer.

“Come here.”

And when he finally pressed his mouth to hers, nothing felt more right. 

He kissed her gently, tentatively and sweetly, making sure not to rush as he indulged himself in her taste. One hand at her back, and the other placed lightly on her jawline. When she did pull away, he made sure not to chase her. 

“Have we ever kissed before?” She asked, her voice barely above a whisper. 

Sam smiled, his hand brushing back the hair that had fallen into her face as she timidly lowered her head. 

“Twice,” he answered simply, truthfully. 

“Because of my quirk?” She added. 

He gave a nonchalant shrug. 

“Yes and no.” 

Calliope gave a frustrated sigh at his cryptic response and let her head fall softly against his lips. He kissed her forehead lightly and pulled her closer. 

As their bodies pressed up against one another’s, a surge of electricity seemed to flow through them. This time, when Calliope raised her head to reclaim his lips, all hesitancy and restraint had vanished. 

Far more confident than the previous press of the lips, and alarming bold considering their location, their hungry kisses drove away all sense of reason. Despite being lost in the feel of her body beneath his roaming hands, Sam was still conscious enough to be glad of the fact Calliope’s mouth moved just as eagerly as his. And when he chanced a cautious roll of his tongue against her lips, the noise she made didn’t sound like that of protest. She welcomed the intrusion with a low moan that caused his hands to grip the curves of her body even tighter. Their teeth clinked together lightly as his mouth pulled into a grin; provoked by the feel of her biting down on his lower lip. When she did it a second time, his body had moved seemingly on its own accord. With his fingers dug into her hips, he pushed forwards until they fell back against the other side of the archway. A stumble of feet and a fumble of hands as Sam reached for her thigh...

The moonlight made them feral. When he lifted her leg, it instinctively wrapped around him. And when he pushed his hips into hers, her breath hitched. Her gasp filled his breathless mouth as his hand traveled higher. Fingertips grazed the thin layer of lace beneath her nightdress, making his head fall longingly into the crook of her slender neck. He fought back the urge to whisper his every carnal desire there and instead busied his mouth against her skin. Another sensuous purr from Calliope emboldened his other hand to take her other leg. He grasped it firmly, her fingers curling into his hair, and made to lift it over his other hip...

“Sam, my boy!” 

The sudden intrusion caused the two startled lovers to jump apart and they turned their flushed, breathless faces just in time to see All Might’s grinning face transform back to his frailer form with a small ‘pop.’ His loud, manly greeting still seemed to echo throughout the quiet courtyard. 

Sam blinked sense back into him as he stared across at the UA teacher. 

“Erm, heh. H-heya, All Might,” he heaved, his breath hoarse and his eyes still slightly out of focus. “How long have you been...”

The skinny man held up a hand, whether to greet them or to dismiss them, Sam wasn’t sure. 

“Oh hey, you two. Don’t mind me.” All Might spoke casually as he made his way to shuffle past them with his hands dug deep into his far too-large-cargo pants. 

Calliope shrunk against her side of the archway, Sam pressing himself against the other, as All Might’s slouching form passed between them. 

“Just gonna pay young Midoriya a visit...” 

And by the time he had left them both alone in the moonlit courtyard again, the carnality of the moment just passed had completely evaporated. 

“We should probably head back,” Calliope muttered, her hands smoothing the creases that had formed across her nightdress. 

“Yeah. Course.” Sam managed, and was glad that she still took his hand when he offered it to her. 

They said nothing as they walked back to the dorm. Instead, they communicated by touch. A slow caress of a thumb, a gentle bump of the shoulders. When they eventually reached the doors to their separate rooms, Calliope silenced the voice that enticed her to invite Sam into hers. 

Tonight had already marked their first real kiss. And my goodness, it couldn’t have been any realer. And though her body ached to feel him against her again so badly, their first kiss would have to be what she settled for. Calliope had always been a romantic. Due to the circumstances of her quirk, she had always dreamt about loving gazes and tender embraces. Therefore, as she lay in bed, once again troubled by an inability to sleep, though this time for an entirely different reason, she found herself blushing hard at the memory of their lustful encounter in the courtyard. Her thighs still radiated the heat put there by Sam’s deft hands. When she draped an arm across her eyes, she remembered the way he had draped her leg around his hip and how he had pressed his hips suggestively into hers. With a small groan, she rolled over and buried her face into her pillow. The restriction of air caused her breathing and heartbeat to finally slow. Eventually, she was welcomed by the sympathetic relief of sleep.


	24. Take Two

It wasn’t as if he wasn’t used to the odd scolding lecture; Russ would often chastise him for his terrible jokes or blatant lack of enthusiasm on occasion. But as Sam stood and listened to Aizawa’s monotone reprimanding, he couldn’t help but feel a little amused. It was like being at school again. 

“You’re meant to be teachers at this establishment. You can’t be seen running around like a couple of unruly teenagers. It’s entirely unprofessional.”

Sam found himself unable to hold back the smile that had progressively been forming on his lips. 

“Ah, c’mon Aizawa...” he drawled, grinning at the dark haired man’s hardened face, “You never broken the rules for a pretty girl before?” 

“No.” 

Sam chuckled at his impassive expression before adding, “And besides, the only thing that’s unprofessional around here is people spreading gossip in the break room.”

He had made his way over to the office door as he said this. With his smiling eyes forever fixed on Aizawa’s unmovable stare, he pulled open the door. 

“Isn’t that right, All Might?”

Behind him, he heard the collective gasp of Ochako, Hagakure, Mina, Mineta and Kaminari who had all been huddled against the wooden frame listening in to their conversation. A moment of awkward silence passed between them before All Might’s sheepish face popped up from behind them. 

“Oh! Hello there, Sam!” The hunching man greeted in a strained voice. “What brings you to Aizawa’s office?” 

Sam turned his squinting eyes towards him, but not before glancing a look at each of the cowering students, their faces each housing a look of embarrassment. It seemed Sam and Aizawa were the only ones who didn’t share the emotion. 

“Well...” Sam began, returning his hand from the door handle to his pocket. 

“Apparently, Calli and I were spotted acting...” he shot a quizzical look to a frowning Aizawa.

“What was the term you used again? Entirely unprofessional?” 

He heard Kaminari and Mineta wheeze. 

“I see!” All Might stated, forever acting coy. “Well don’t let me disturb you!”

Coz you haven’t done that already. 

“Carry on!”

And with that, the former number 1 hero stalked off down the corridor to the sound of stifled laughter from the students he left behind. 

Aizawa sighed, his fingers reaching for his temple. 

“You can go now, Sam.” He informed, turning away from Sam’s sly smile. 

The students jumped to their feet as Sam made to leave the room and scurried a little ways down the corridor. The girls were giggling excitedly while the boys gaped at him with wide eyes. Sam internally sighed as he awaited the inevitable bombardment of hushed babbling. 

“Dude! Did All Might seriously catch you and Calli making out?”

“Oh my god! Totally awkward!”

“You gotta tell us everything!” 

“So, you’re dating now, right?”

They followed him like angry crows as he walked the length of the corridor. This was arguably the noisiest Saturday morning he’d experienced in a while. 

“Oh, I’m so happy for you both!”

“Okay, but how come Aizawa didn’t tell Calli off too?”

“Ha! So unfair, dude!”

Sam closed his eyes as he pinched his nose in frustration. 

“It’s most likely to spare her from the shame and embarrassment,” Sam drawled, sighing when they continued to follow him down the next corridor. 

“Speaking of which...” he added, stopping in his tracks causing Mineta’s small body to collide against his leg. 

“You kids best not tell Calli about this. She’ll be mortified.” 

The grape-headed boy peered up at him with an uncomfortably mischievous glint in his eyes. 

“Only if you tell us all the juicy details...”

Sam furrowed his brow. 

“Ehh. No can do, kiddo. Now, why don’t you all just run along, hm?”

He glanced at the each of the girls hoping that they’d be the ones most likely to take a hint first. 

“Fine!” whined Hagakure, the shoulders of her floating T-shirt slumping in defeat. 

Grumbling, they all turned to leave, though Mina had had to drag away Kaminari who in turn grabbed a wet-mouthed Mineta and hauled him down the corridor too. Ochako called a cheerful “see you later, Sans!” As they disappeared around the corner. 

As Sam made his way to meet his two teammates at the cafeteria for breakfast, he wondered just how long it would take for the news of his and Calliope’s heated moment in the courtyard to spread. For Calliope’s sake, he hoped a lifetime. Though, with his years in education not that far behind him, he was vividly aware of how unlikely those chances were. He only hoped Russ wouldn’t lecture him for his brash behaviour too. 

Thankfully, when he strolled into the cafeteria, he was relieved to find it pretty much empty. This made spotting Calliope and Russ a simple task, especially since Russ was wearing his staple red scarf. Slipping into a seat opposite them, Sam thanked his younger brother as he pushed a mug of coffee towards him; by god, did he need a pick-me-up. He’d already downed half of the cooled beverage by the time Russ had finished greeting him. 

“Hey, Sam. Sleep well?” Russ asked. His genuine tone suggesting that he had not yet heard anything about what had happened between his two teammates.

When Sam chanced a look at Calliope, he caught her smiling subtly into her bowl of fruit salad. 

“Sure did,” he replied, casting his own sly smile against the rim of his coffee mug. 

“Good good!” Russ chirped, “because the students have all arranged a little gathering in their common room this afternoon.” 

Russ had clearly been saving this bit of information until Sam had joined the table because Calliope also cast him a puzzled expression.

“They have? What for?” Sam asked. 

“Goodness!” Exclaimed Russ as he looked from one teammate to the next. 

“Don’t you two realise that this is our last weekend at UA?” 

Calliope’s mouth dropped open, the pineapple from her fork plopping sadly back into her bowl. 

“Is it really?” She asked, her voice heightened with disbelief. 

Russ nodded sadly. 

“It’s gone by fast, hasn’t it?”

And it really had. Sam sighed heavily as he finished the last of his coffee. He cast a look at Calliope who was now prodding glumly at her breakfast. It must feel so weird for her to know that she would be returning to a home she couldn’t remember. Ever since waking up from her petrification, UA and the people she had met here were all she knew. 

“Hey...” he called softly, taking her hand from across the table. Her fingers curled instinctively into his the moment their skin touched.

“Let’s make the most of our last week here, hm?” 

Russ nodded beside her and pulled her into a one-armed hug. 

“Indeed! We’ll end our little adventure with a bang, and then it’s on to the next one. Right, Calli?” 

And Sam was thankful to see her smile once again. 

Apparently, the gathering would be taking place around lunch time, giving the American team the rest of the morning to spend together. They had returned to the brothers’ room where they passed the time making arrangements for their arrival back in America. They were set to fly back the following Saturday. Russ had called his old mentor, Undyne, and she had assured him that their apartment would be stocked up and spotlessly clean for them when they got back. Their houseplants were all still alive, even the one in Sam’s room. According to her, a lot of news networks had been reaching out to try and get an interview from them in regards to what happened while they were over seas. This had irked both brothers and they informed Undyne that they’d be sending off a statement full of choice words for the media. When Calliope told them that she didn’t mind the idea and would rather have them speak the truth than allow the media to invent their own based on speculation, Russ had grumbled thoughtfully. 

“I suppose you have a point.” 

And when Undyne backed up Calliope’s opinion, Russ had sighed and declared that he alone would face the Press, so long as that was okay with Calliope. Sam had outright refused. 

“Go ahead, bro. You’re way better at handling those vultures than me.”

The moment Russ sent out a reply, his phone began to ring like crazy. He answered the first few calls, relaying the same message everytime; stating when they’d be back, when he’d be available for interviews etc. The rest of the calls he let go to voicemail as the clock was nearing 1pm. 

“Time to go see what the students have in store for us this time,” Russ smiled, flipping his still ringing phone face-down on the side table. 

Calliope pursed her lips. She was aware that the last time the students had arranged a farewell party for them, it had been a grand affair. Part of her was a little disappointed that she couldn’t remember the event as, judging from the photos taken from the evening, it had looked like a wonderful time. Both her teammates had looked so handsome in their formal attire, and she couldn’t believe she’d actually worn the that dress! The garment in question was folded neatly away in her suitcase. There would be no need for such an outfit this time around. 

Instead, she and the two brothers left their rooms dressed in the clothes that they had put on that morning. Russ, who always looked smart no matter what the occasion, was dressed in a casual pair of navy slacks, an ironed white t-shirt and his signature red scarf that was thrown effortlessly across his shoulders. His fair hair was neatly styled, unlike his older brother’s whose messy white head bobbed alongside him almost a foot shorter. Sam wore his usual attire of an oversized hooded jacket and sweatpants. His grey beanie hat was almost the same shade as the rings beneath his tired-looking eyes as he cast them towards Calliope. They shared a secret smile as they’re hands brushed together as they walked. At some point, they would have to let Russ know what had happened; omitting as much detail as possible, of course. Calliope was wearing the same cardigan she had worn the night before. How the sleeves had slipped from her shoulders as Sam pushed her against the hard stone of the archway...

“Yay! You’re here!” Ochako’s cheerful voice rang out, cutting through Calliope’s shameless daydream. 

“Perfect timing!” 

Once again, the students of Class 1A hadn’t failed to make Calliope’s heart swell. 

Upon entering the common area, the three teammates were greeted with the delightful smell of freshly baked goods and hot tea. The food and drinks were all placed neatly on the table by the couch where many of the class were lounging. Others milled around in small groups, each holding a cup or a slice of cake. They all turned their heads, however, when the three young adults walked in. 

Mina squealed gleefully as she bounded over to them. She swiftly hugged Calliope then fist bumped the two brothers. 

“We know it’s not much, but we really wanted to do something for you all again before you leave!” 

Yaoyorozu nodded as she approached them. 

“I can’t believe how fast it’s gone by,” she commented sadly. 

Many more of the students came and expressed their sadness for their departure. But it was once again Kaminari who raised the class’ spirits and got everyone in a celebratory mood. With a cheery pep talk and a poke of Jirou’s ribs, he suggested a change of pace. 

“Why don’t you put on some music! Lighten the mood a little?” 

She obliged after shooting him a glare for prodding her and, once the room filled with chill EDM, everyone settled into cheerful conversations and shared laughter over board games and snacks. 

Half way through a heated game of cards, all heads turned towards the door as a figure filled its frame. 

“Oh hello, Hawks!” Calliope called, followed by a surprised greeting from Tokoyami. 

“I didn’t think we had any training today?” The Jet Black Hero inquired, rising to his feet. 

The winged hero smiled serenely as he peered around the room of bemused faces. This had been the first time many of the other students had seen him in person. There was a lot of excited whispering coming from the girls. 

“Ah, no training today! But a little birdie told me you guys were gonna be having a shin-dig to see Calli and the guys off!” 

Hawks then turned to her and produced a bouquet of flowers from behind his wings. Sam squinted his eyes at them; how on earth did he know pink roses were her favourite? Calliope cooed happily as she took them from him and placed her nose into their petals. She breathed in and sighed contentedly. The noise made Sam knit his brows together; his expression only relaxing when he heard Mina giggle softly beside him. When he cast her a sidewards glance, she returned it with a knowing smirk. 

“So, I thought I’d drop by,” Hawks grinned. 

Calliope returned the expression as she thanked him again for his gift. 

Despite his initial reservations, once Calliope introduced he and his brother to Hawks, Sam reluctantly had to admit the guy was alright. In fact, after talking with him, while half-observing an unnecessarily competitive game of snap, the older Skelebro found that they had a lot in common. Most of their conversation revolved around their love for fried chicken and the best hidden-gem restaurants in America. He didn’t stay for very long though and he bid them farewell as he left to go on patrol. He shook the brothers’ hands and hugged Calliope, who thanked him once more for the flowers. 

“Keep in touch, ‘Kay? If I’m ever in the the States, I’ll come see you!” He called. A final salute and he was out the door. 

The knowing glances among the students hadn’t gone unnoticed; it seemed the news of Sam and Calliope’s interrupted kiss had reached every ear in the room by the time Jirou’s playlist looped for the second time that afternoon. Much to Sam’s relief though, they had all managed to keep the news of the heated encounter quiet. After all, Sam hoped he’d be the one to break the news to his brother. At least that way, he could leave out the details that would make Russ shake his head, roll his eyes and maybe even want to cover his ears. But the arrival of a devilishly grinning Midnight and a sheepishly grinning All Might made him immediately doubt that would be possible. 

“So when’s the wedding, you two naughty little devils?” Midnight crowed, her arms slinking around Calliope and Sam and pulling them into her bosom. All Might had conveniently shuffled off to hide behind the group of students that had gathered by the snack table. 

Russ raised an eyebrow as he glanced from Midnight’s gloating face to those of his two teammates; Calliope was tugging sheepishly at her visor, trying to hide her blushing cheeks while Sam chewed the inside of his mouth, avoiding all eye contact. 

Sniggers sounded from Sero and Mineta who were watching the scene unravel from over their helpings of cake. 

When Russ continued to stare quizzically at Midnight, her eyes flashed with mischievous glee. 

“Oh my! Haven’t you heard, Papyrus?” 

With a delighted purr, she relinquished her hold on Sam and Calliope and instead wrapped herself around the younger Skelebro. Now accustom to the fellow teacher’s flirtatious behaviour, Russ simply stood there and waited for her to explain herself. All the while, his squinting, honey-coloured eyes trained on his fellow teammates. 

“It seems your two teammates have been having their own private work-out sessions late at night...” She purred, walking two fingers suggestively up Russ’ chest. 

“Oh?” He cooed, his lip twitching a smirk either at Midnight’s wandering touch or his teammate’s fidgeting reactions. 

Calliope was now not only trying to disappear further behind her visor, but also behind her long hair as it cascaded around her dipped head. Sam’s glass had clouded as he sighed heavily into his iced-tea.

“Indeed!” Midnight relished, bringing her lips close to Russ’ ear. Though the action suggested she were going to whisper, she made a note of speaking loud enough to be heard by many when she said, “All Might caught them all tangled up against a wall in the-“

“Okay!” Sam declared loudly over his misty glass. 

Russ’ eyebrows had traveled all the way up to his hairline. The sniggers around the room had now turned into uncontrolled laughter. 

Seriously lady? In front of the kids? 

And Aizawa had had to nerve to accuse him of acting shamelessly. 

What had All Might even told them all? 

Sam cast a look around the room for an excuse to bail from the awkward scene. His eyes fell on the freshly made cheesecake Sato had just placed on the table. 

“Time for some cake, I think.”

He felt bad for leaving Calliope behind with Russ’ smirking face and Midnight’s girlish cackling, but despite his usually laid back demeanour and carefree attitude, Sam couldn’t being himself to look his younger brother in the eye at that moment. 

As he crossed the room, he noticed how Mineta and Kaminari had looked utterly devastated to have not heard the rest of the story. They’d been fishing for juicy details all day. The smaller boy had dramatically thrown himself into the couch next to a scowling Bakugo and nervously laughing Deku. Kaminari, on the other hand, was pouting as he pushed his last mouthful of cake across his plate. 

As Sam helped himself to his own helping of dessert, with little intention of actually eating it, he shot a hasty look over at where his brother and Calliope stood. Midnight had sashayed off to speak to All-Might who was still lingering at the other end of the room. Much to his relief, Calliope and his brother seemed to be laughing, Russ doing his usual habit of grasping her shoulder. From above the buzz of mingled conversations that floated about the room, Sam faintly heard his younger brother congratulate her, the words ‘it’s about time’ meeting his ear. 

Unlike Calliope, Sam had never really feared any shift in dynamic between the three of them. Russ had always made it clear that his feelings for Calliope were purely platonic, having noticeably formed a sisterly bond with her early on. The younger sibling had always been aware of Sam and Calliope’s feelings towards each other and his only frustration came from their lack of ability to communicate them.

So, when Sam eventually walked back over to them and wrapped an arm around his now publicly announced girlfriend, Russ had merely shaken his head and smiled. 

“Zero to 100, hm?” He teased. And honestly, they’re team had never felt closer. 

The rest of the afternoon consisted of singing, dancing, laughter and photos. Yaoyorozu had brought along a polaroid camera for the occasion and the students took turns in taking pictures. One photo consisted of Sam with all the girls mimicking his trademark grin and slouching posture, while another was All-Might and the Skelebros with their black eyes and broad smiles. And when Mina pointed out she had eyes like them too, they took another photo with her nestled sweetly between the two brothers.

Many of the photos were of the girls in various different poses. However, Hagakure whined at every single one once they had developed in Ochako’s waving hand. 

“Ohh! No fair!” She sulked, as her presence was lost once again in the tangle of limbs and loungewear. 

“Hey now!” Russ called sympathetically, “how about this?” 

And he hoisted her up onto his shoulder as she shrieked happily. Kirishima chuckled as he clicked the shutter. Hagakure was more than thrilled with the charming photo, especially when Russ signed it with a heart. 

The only student who hadn’t yet taken part in the ongoing photo shoot was Bakugo. Even Todoroki had been dragged into a few. 

“C’mon, buddy. How else will I remember your delightful face?” Sam jeered, throwing an arm around the snarling teen. 

But after Bakugo threw a persistent Sam off of him 3 times in a row, Calliope had sneakily uttered the word ‘stàsi’ and held him still while she snapped a few photos. Ochako and Mina pulled at his paralysed face, making him grin awkwardly between them.

“Heh. Say cheese!” Sam chuckled, placing two fingers behind Bakugo’s head. The teen could only fume silently. Once Calliope released him, however, he had roared angrily into Sam’s grinning face. Surprisingly though, he did not stalk off to his room and only rolled his eyes when Calliope sat on the couch next to him and showed him the developed pictures. 

When the first yawns began to form, the trio bid the students and fellow teachers good night and headed back to their dorm. Sam had reached for Calliope’s hand as they walked. Russ only smirked. And when Sam stalled at the door to their room and cast a lingering glance at Calliope’s back as she disappeared into her dorm, his brother had only laughed and left him to deliberate quietly in the corridor. 

“I’ll see you in the morning, Sam...” he smirked.

Calliope had answered her door on the first knock.


	25. You and I

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Erotic chapter. Suggestive themes. I wouldn't call it lemon though...
> 
> Skip for those who are uncomfortable though.

“Sam,” Calliope whispered, her heart hammering in her chest. 

Though she had waited behind her door with the hopes he’d knock, she hadn’t actually expected him to. 

“Calli.” He replied, his expression torn between timid apprehension and a lazy grin. 

For a moment they simply stood; Sam under the fluorescent lights of the corridor, Calliope in the gloom of her dorm room. One body was relaxed, patient, hands in pockets. The other was tense, yearning, hands almost shaking. When the former took a step forwards, the latter yielded. 

Calliope fell against him, her arms around his neck and her mouth against his. He’d stumbled, catching himself only by grasping at the doorframe. One set of nails scratched along the wood as one hand pulled. The other set of nails scratched along skin as the other hand groped. They backed into the darkness of the room, only being fully engulfed by it once Sam’s foot kicked the door closed behind them. Furniture was bumped, walls were knocked, clothes were pulled off, torn off, discarded and ditched. 

It was only when Calliope’s bare skin hit the linen of her bedsheets and the springs beneath her creaked under their combined weight that Sam seemed to rouse from his lustful stupor. Breathlessly, he pulled back to look at her. The only clothing that remained on her body were the lace underwear at her heaving chest and slender hips, as well as her visor. 

“Calli,” he uttered, his voice hoarse. When he looked at her, the hunger in his eyes had been quelled by a look of concern. He had lifted his body slightly from hers; his hips no longer pushed between her legs, his chest no longer pressed against hers. 

“Are you sure you want to...” he began, his low voice causing her to shiver just as much as his fingertips did as they lightly brushed her jawline. He swallowed before continuing.

“We don’t have to.” 

Calliope tilted her head into his hand as he continued to gently caress her face. The smell of the night air filled the room, drifting in from the window Calliope always left open. It seemed to enhance the intermingled scent of jasmine and peppermint that their tangled bodies emitted. She inhaled deeply, savouring the aroma before exhaling a shaky sigh. 

“Have we ever...” she began to ask in a quiet voice, but Sam was already shaking his head by the second word. 

“I’m not even sure if I’ve ever done this before. I can’t remember.” 

Sam’s eyes searched her face quietly, his features illuminated only by the slither of moonlight that broke in through the thin curtains that danced gently in the breeze. 

“It’s okay, Calli.” He smiled, bringing his face to hers and kissing her again, only far more tenderly this time. The feel of his warm lips and the cool breeze brought goosebumps upon her skin. 

“I just don’t want to disappoint you,” she whispered into his mouth as his head turned to deepen their touch. 

A low rumble sounded in his throat, his nose brushed against hers as he drew back slightly. 

“You make me many things, Calli...” he murmured, trailing soft kisses across her face. “But ‘disappointed’ will never be one of them.” 

At his words, she caught his wandering mouth with her own. He seemed to hesitate, holding back so as to gauge her movements. His lips followed hers, working at her speed and mimicking her rhythm. Part of her was grateful for his consideration while another part craved for him to take control again. 

Truthfully, she had no idea what she was doing. Not simply in that moment, but in general. Perhaps they were moving too fast.

Though he had memories of her that spanned the length of almost a year, she could only recall knowing him for around 3 months.

Though she had undeniably fallen for him for a second time around, Calliope wondered whether or not their pacing had been set at a dangerous speed...

Then again, could she really utter the request for them to stop?

When she parted her lips at a weak attempt to voice her concerns, Sam’s clever tongue slipped past them. The words that had barely even begun to form in her throat were replaced by a complacent moan. The doubts that had crept into her mind were swiftly chased away with every swirl, swipe and stab of his tongue.

No, she would not have him stop- could not have him stop. 

As their kiss deepened, so did the press of their bodies. Calliope relished the feel of his broad shoulders beneath her clawing hands and the slow push of his hips between her parted thighs. When the last of their clothing dropped over the side of the bed, Sam asked one last time if she were ready. 

Even after she had nodded, closing her eyes and removing her visor, Sam continued to read her every move; her every wordless request. From the way she bit his lips to the way she drew her thighs across his ribs. Every subtle and not so subtle gesture, every soft moan and loud gasp. He forever remained attentive. 

He whispered softly in her ear, against her skin, into her mouth; breathlessly questioning, gently encouraging, seductively promising; what she wanted, what she did, what he’d do. 

Her body responded with an arch of her back, a squeeze of her hands, a drape of her leg. 

Slow and sensual; low voices and long sighs. 

Faster, further; short gasps and guttural groans. 

As the rock of their bodies quickened, along with their breaths, their hearts, their mutual pleas, their grips tightened; fingers in sheets, in hair, on thighs, hips, waist...

Teeth bit against sweat-coated skin. Sweat-coated skin muffled low growls and throaty cries. Low growls and throaty cries accompanied clenching hands and curving spines. Two bodies gently shook to the sound of quiet panting and soft caresses. 

Everything fell still once more. 

A breathless declaration of love drifted effortlessly into the darkness as two lovers drifted slowly to sleep.


	26. Easy Like A Sunday Morning

This was how she always imagined Sunday’s mornings to feel like. Many of her romantic novels described something similar to this, though this was far better.

Outside, the birds were singing and the sun shone brightly from behind the occasional cloud. They drifted across the sky as lazily as Calliope’s fingers did across her lover’s bare skin. 

Sam lay with his arm around her as her smiling face pressed neatly against his chest. It rose and fell gently under her cheek as he continued to sleep peacefully. She took the chance to study his handsome face without the use of her visor. She delicately traced his jaw with her finger, her nail subtly scraping at the stubble that was beginning to show again there. Her eyes roamed silently over his fair skin and messy hair. Her lips softly pressed against the corners of his mouth. 

A low moan sounded in his throat and she averted her eyes instinctively. 

“Good morning,” he mumbled. She watched his lips pull into a sleepy smile. 

“Good morning,” she returned.

And when he turned his head to kiss her, her morning got even better. 

By the time her head fell back against the pillows as the last of her moan escaped her lips, both she and Sam were wide awake. He grinned down at her as he stroked a hand over her disheveled locks. 

“I love you, beautiful.” He cooed softly.

Her body still trembled slightly as the last few waves of pleasure ebbed away leaving her light-headed and slightly dazed. Still, she managed to return the sentiment and he kissed her lovingly for the effort. 

Her leg slipped from his hip as he rose from the bed and made his way over to the bathroom. When he returned back, Calliope had finally managed to slip into a robe and brew a pot of coffee. 

She sipped at the hot beverage as Sam’s lips touched at her shoulder. When he stole her mug from her, she playfully threw a kick his way. Of course, he evaded it without spilling a drop and she jokingly cursed him on her way to the bathroom. 

Upon reentering the room freshly showered, she was greeted by both brothers. Luckily, she had pulled on a robe beforehand. Russ cast a warm smile in her direction from his seat in the armchair, while a still semi-dressed Sam stood by the window next to him. 

“Good morning, Calli” Russ greeted, turning his eyes back to his coffee as she pulled her robe around her tighter. 

“I assume you slept well?” 

She threw him a playfully scolding look as she ran a comb through her long hair. Sam clicked his tongue as his younger brother laughed lightly. 

The rest of the day was spent huddled around a laptop screen while they answered e-mails, watched movies and streamed playlists. When Sam offered to head into the city alone to replenish their snacks, Russ and Calliope had nestled together in the patch of evening sun that was cast across her bed. 

“It’s safe to say that this trip proved far more than we bargained for,” he sighed as she rested her head against his shoulder. 

“No kidding,” Calliope replied with a drowsy Sunday smile.

“Things will be all okay now though.” Russ declared. And, if Calliope had learnt anything about the younger sibling in her time spent with him, it was that when The Great Papyrus declared anything in such a way, it usually came true. 

The final week at UA was spent enjoying the good weather and the good company. Afternoon lessons with the American team were mainly spent goofing off. Though they still trained, most of the activities they had planned were mainly for fun. For the entire 5 days, no one was sent to the nurse’s office. Additionally, Sam didn’t nap at all during any of them. Every last minute was spent talking, laughing and sharing wisdom with the younger students. They went over all that they had learnt in the past several months. The teachers could only praise the class’ progress. As a final reward, Sam finally caved at their collective request to witness him use him ultimate attack. After firing a blast into the air like a bright, white beacon, the students then took turns to ride the enormous, beastly skull through the air. Sam had fallen immediately into a deep sleep that night as Calliope ran her hands through his hair. 

When the morning of their departure finally came around, the students of Class 1A, as well as some of the teachers, gathered at the gates of UA. They formed a semi circle around the American team as they awaited their taxi to the train station. 

“Well,” Russ began, as the many sad faces stared back at them, “it’s been a pleasure.”

Calliope felt hot tears begin to roll down her cheeks from beneath her visor. 

“Heh. You’re all destined for bright futures, that’s for sure.” Sam grinned. 

And it was Calliope who made towards the class first. She strode over to the nearest students and threw her arms around them. It was Todoroki and Yaoyorozu; the first two students to ever approach her. She then embraced a teary Deku; a boy she knew would go far in life. Next, Kaminari and Kirishima; sweet young boys that never failed to make her smile. Ochako, Mina and Hagakure; three, wonderful young girls that felt like sisters to her. The loveable Sero and even Mineta, who behaved himself under the watchful eyes of his teachers. Sato, who’s cakes were always delicious. Tokoyami, Shouji and Ojiro who were always so polite and respectful. The sweet Kouda and flamboyant Aoyama who always complimented her shimmering scales. Iida, Tsu and Jirou who had always been the voices of reason and shown so much support. And finally, Bakugo; the boy who shared her secret. When her arms went around his neck and hugged him tightly, he had simply placed a reluctant hand at her back. But when she whispered her thanks for all that he had done, she felt his head gently nod as he softly grunted a farewell. When she turned her head to kiss his cheek, his jaw stiffened under her lips. 

“I’m going to miss you all so much,” She croaked as her two teammates shook hands and returned hugs. Many of the students were crying openly, even Russ’ eyes sparkled in the early morning sun. 

“You’re welcome to come back anytime,” the principal called as Sam, Russ and Calliope climbed into their taxi. Aizawa nodded at his side while All Might and Midnight waved their hands sadly. As the car pulled away, Calliope buried her face into Russ’ shoulder as Sam held tightly onto her hand. 

Her eyes remained wet for most of the train journey to the air port. The carriage had rocked Sam to sleep leaving Russ to silently comfort Calliope with a gentle hand. 

As they boarded the plane, Calliope’s fear of flying was seemingly overpowered by her perpetual sadness. However, once the engines began to whir loudly, Sam and Russ both had to hold her hands during take-off. And when turbulence shook the cabins, she instinctively grabbed at their arms. Luckily, after a strong drink, she managed to finally get some sleep. 

She woke up to the pilot’s announcement that they were to be landing soon. Sam’s head lolled on her shoulder as he continued to snooze while Russ peered out the window at the passing clouds. Calliope kept her eyes from the view as it only reignited her anxiety. Once they touched down, she immediately relaxed and relinquished her grip from her teammates’ arms. 

The paparazzi hounded them as soon as they exited the airport. Sam pulled his hood over his head and cursed them quietly as they weaved their way slowly to the private car Undyne had arranged for them. She heard the name ‘Medusa’ being called as Russ and Sam let her climb into the car first. The flash of the cameras continued up until the last Skelebro had clambered into the back seat and gave the driver their address. As they pulled away from the dazzling lights, Sam wound down the window and stuck out his hand. Calliope didn’t need to see to know what gesture he had cast towards the paparazzi. Russ scolded him for most of the way back to their apartment but Sam only grinned from beneath his hood.

Their apartment was nothing like she’d imagined. For some reason, she’d pictured a modest building in red brick. But of course, the Gaster brothers were two of the most successful heroes in America; they’re home certainly showed that. The building was sleek and stylish, towering beside an ocean view. The corridors were lined with clean, white walls and monochromatic print carpet. When they reached the door to their apartment, Russ had turned to Calliope with a cheerful smile. 

“Welcome back, Calli.” 

And he pushed open the door to their home. 

Undyne had kept her promise; the place was spotlessly clean. Though she had no recollection of ever being here, Calliope couldn’t help but find the smells that greeted her familiar. 

“Not bad, hm?” Russ grinned as he threw down his bags onto their large corner sofa.

Calliope cast her eyes around the large lounge with its glossy table tops and sleek furniture. She kicked off her shoes and wriggled her toes into the soft carpet underfoot. Sam was already in his slippers and was studying the contents of the fridge. 

“Looks like we’re ordering food tonight,” he called over his shoulder. 

“Fine by me,” Russ stated, flicking through the hefty pile of mail Undyne had left on the coffee table for them. He frowned as he sorted them into three piles. 

“We can go through all this mail together while we eat,” he suggested. His brother grimaced. 

“In the meantime...” Russ mused, squinting at a pink envelope covered in hearts, “why don’t you show Calliope to her room.” The envelope was tossed into the middle pile. 

The sound of a can opening sounded from beside her. She turned to see Sam taking a long swig of beer. With a small jerk of his head and a lazy grin, he gestured for Calliope to follow him. 

Theirs rooms were positioned along a short hallway; the two brother’s rooms on one side and Calliope’s on the other. A spacious bathroom was located at the end of the hall. She eyed the bathtub with longing; she’d definitely be soaking in it later, up to her eyeballs in bubbles...

When Sam pointed at her door, she pushed it open and a strange sensation washed over her. Though she’d never set eyes on the room before, it’s familiarity was uncanny. It was her down to a T- from the cream walls and the lush, hanging green plants to the mosaic patterned mirrors and leather bound books. 

“I’ll leave you to get reacquainted,” Sam smiled, planting a kiss on her shoulder before turning to leave. 

The next half an hour was spent looking though her drawers, her closet, her shelves. She ran her hands along her neatly folded clothes, the beautiful dresses she’d hung up and arranged by colour and the alphabetically ordered novels. How fortunate she was to be blessed with such a home, such a family. 

The brothers called her as a knock at the door informed them that their food had arrived. Russ had ordered pizza. They ate in front of the T.V, though no one was actually watching it. Instead they passed around the fan mail that they had received whilst they were away. Most of the letters were from enamoured fangirls; the pink envelope had been for Sans. His eyes had scanned it quickly, his lips twitching all the while. Russ had even opened a letter to have a raunchy photo fall into his lap. On the back of it was a message that made the younger Skelebro blush. 

“Good lord...” he muttered, tossing it aside onto the ever growing pile of opened mail. 

“How often do you get these?” Calliope asked, grinning at the brother’s reactions. 

“Every day.” Sam replied, dropping his pizza crust back into the box. 

Calliope looked over the dozen letters she had received. Most of them were also from women, but the messages were far tamer. In fact, her fans were immensely sweet. Many of them wrote to tell her just how happy they were to hear that she was okay and wished her a safe return back to America. One of the letters was a lengthy love letter that made her shift uncomfortable. 

“Do you ever answer them?” She asked, folding the love letter back up and setting it aside. 

“Occasionally,” Russ replied. 

Sam shook his head. 

Once the pizza was eaten and everything was cleared away, Calliope turned to the brothers and asked if she could run a bath. 

Laughing, they turned to her. 

“Calli, this is your home too.” They reminded her. 

The fragrant water was delightful. She had lit candles and poured wine. There was even a vinyl record player in the corner of the room that sang sweetly to her as she ran her hands along her tired limbs. 

By the time she stepped out, dressed in a golden, satin nightgown, the water and wine had left her wonderfully drowsy. 

As she glimpsed towards the large windows that overlooked the sea, she saw that the sun had already set. 

“Feel better?” Russ asked, leaning against the door frame of his room. Calliope saw the bold colours and neatly arranged decor behind him. She nodded sleepily, still cradling her glass of wine in her fingers. She stepped towards him to rest her face against his chest. After a short embrace, they kissed each other’s faces lightly and bid each other goodnight. 

When she pushed open the door to her room, she had hoped to see Sam already there. Finishing her glass, she turned and stared at his closed door. When sheer willpower didn’t get it to open, she made towards it and quietly turned the handle. 

He was laid against the headboard of his bed, his eyes cast into a book who’s title she couldn’t make out, though she was sure it was of the sci-fi genre. 

“Knock knock,” she called softly. 

Lowering his book, he threw a smile her way. 

“Heya, beautiful.” 

She closed the door behind her as he beckoned her over. When she slumped into his arms, sleep embraced her shortly after.


	27. Eb And Flow

The couple alternated between rooms for the next few days before ultimately settling on Calliope’s; her bed was larger and more comfortable that Sam’s. 

One morning, as they lay in bed together in the sunlight that cascaded in through the open windows, Russ had knocked lightly on their door. Calliope had nervously shuffled further down into her sheets so as to hide her nakedness from the younger sibling, but he had chosen to remain on the other side of the door when he called to them. 

“I’m heading out to attend an interview. I don’t expect to be back til later this evening.” 

Sam yawned quietly next to her as she called back. 

“Okay! Sam and I will make dinner!” 

When the front door to their apartment closed, leaving Calliope and Sam alone, they immediately began their usual routine of arguing over who would go make the coffee. 

“I made it yesterday!” Sam groaned, playfully pushing Calliope towards the edge of the bed. 

Laughing, she rolled back into him and took his face between her hands. But he anticipated her little trick and quickly shut his eyes tight. 

“Nu uh. I’m not falling for that.” He grinned, as Calliope attempted to use her quirk on him. She moaned in mock disappointment when her fingers failed to open his eyes. 

Sitting up, she swung a slender leg over him and straddled his hips. The sheets slipped from her bare shoulders as she lent into him. 

“Sam...” she crooned, forcing a layer of seductive charm to her voice, “why won’t you look at your girlfriend?” 

She grinned mischievously down at him as he bit his lower lip and gave a lustful growl, his hands gracing her smooth thighs. Though his eyes remained shut, his roaming hands drank in her figure. He ran his tongue along his teeth as she lowered her face to nibble at his ear lobe. 

“Because she refuses to make coffee for the third morning in a row,” he smirked, his hands squeezing, his hips rising; grinding, suggesting. 

And once their lips met, coffee was no longer their concern.

And thankfully, what with Russ being gone, neither was being quiet. 

Their routine developed naturally over the course of the next few weeks. Russ continued to attend interviews while Sam and Calliope handled any paper work and emails from home.

Thanks to his impeccable ability to handle any media attention, Papyrus’ popularity rose considerably. This in turn increased his billboard ranking week by week. Though the Skelebros, and now Calli, worked as a team, their rankings were listed individually. Papyrus was slowly climbing the chart while his older brother remained at his spot in the top 20. It seemed that, despite Sans’ rebellious and flippant attitude towards the media, the public still loved him. Perhaps his disregard for the Press was part of what made him so appealing. After all, it was only the mainstream media that he shunned, for anytime he was approached by a fan in the street, he would smile and oblige their requests for photos or autographs. 

Calliope’s rank was far lower than her two teammates but it seemed her comeback was gradually bolstering her popularity too. 

Once they’d finally settled back into the life in America, the team resumed their hero work. They patrolled the city streets together, mainly during the night as their quirks worked best with less people around. However, on the rare occasion a fellow hero was in need of back-up, they would don their hero costumes (well, Calli and Papyrus would) and head out. 

The first time they’d been called in to assist in the pursuit of a group of armed robbers, Calliope had been rattled with nerves. Though she’d taken down many small-time criminals during her nightly patrols, she hadn’t yet encountered much of a challenge. But when Undyne the Undying, Papyrus’ old mentor and 9th ranking hero, had requested them as back-up, Calliope knew that they were about to face some top tier villains. 

“Don’t be nervous, Calli.” Papyrus had called as they sped along the deserted highway towards the location Undyne had given them. 

The Skelebros sat in the front of Russ’ prized red sports car while Calliope had had to squeeze herself into its cramped back seats. His gentle eyes glanced at her in his rear view mirror. 

“We’ll be fine.” 

As usual, the Great Papyrus was right. As soon as they leapt from the car and headed towards the shootout, her instincts and training had kicked in. They soon took the villains down with the combined use of Calliope’s paralysing stare and Sam’s pinpoint accuracy; he had pinned down all the villains with his rapier sharp bones leaving Calliope to stealthily disarm them in turn. Russ had assisted his old mentor at protecting the civilians from the battle then hauling the villains away after knocking them out cold. 

Sans left the battle without a scratch, but Papyrus had received a badly cut lip from where one of the villains had clawed at him while he and Undyne bundled them into the armoured prison truck. Upon returning home, Calliope had tended to the injury.

Despite all his bravery on the battle field, Russ had whimpered like a child when she dabbed antiseptic at the wound. And when he continued to squirm, she threatened to use her quirk on him to keep him still. 

The injury ended up leaving a small scar across his lips that Sam had had to convince his brother made him look even cooler. 

“If it bothers you that much, we can always trade,” Sam joked, tilting his chin down at his own, enormously scarred upper body. He had just got out of the shower and had entered the lounge to see his younger sibling fussing with his mouth in the mirror. Unlike his older brother, Russ took far more pride in his appearance. Calliope laughed quietly into her teacup as they bickered. In truth, both the brothers’ scars suited them well. It would take a lot more than a few battle blemishes to render the Skelebros unattractive. 

Calliope would often spend nights tracing her fingers along the uneven skin at Sam’s chest, laughing softly at the way it made him shiver. He’d get her back by similarly gliding his deft hands over the smooth scales at her spine whilst dancing his lips across those by her eyes. Those kind of nights would often end in a heated tangle of limbs accompanied by dirty whispers.

When they weren’t doing Hero work, the brothers would show Calliope around town. She soon got used to the layout of the city, but not the prowling paparazzi that came with it. They were continuously on the search for a juicy story. And it seemed they eventually struck gold when images of Sans and the hero Medusa holding hands along the beach surfaced all over the internet and the front pages of the tabloids.

News of their relationship soon spread. To quell the Press’ thirst for details and to attempt to put a stop to their relentless pursuit, Sam had swallowed his pride and finally given them a statement. 

“We’re dating. Yeah.” Was all they got. 

This news made their popularity sky rocket. Calliope’s ranking jumped from the 30s, to 23rd position. Sans’ rocketed back to 12th place. It seemed being romantically involved with a fellow hero and teammate had caused his already high approval ratings to soar. 

Soon enough, it seemed everyone was talking about the return of the Skelebros and their living arrangements with the hero Medusa. 

Then one day, as Calliope prepped dinner with Russ, a knock at the door sounded. The two exchanged a puzzled glance; they hadn’t been expecting anyone to visit. 

“I’ll get it,” Calliope offered, setting down her knife next to her finely diced onions and wiping her hands on a cloth. 

She turned into the hallway, her soft footfalls padding lightly on the fluffy carpet as she passed the bathroom. Sam was still in the shower, the cherry pie he’d baked for dessert was already out the oven. The door knocked again, this time a little louder. 

“Coming!” She called. And when she pulled open the door, her mouth fell agape with surprise. The bespectacled man that stood before her was tall, even taller than Russ but, though his shoulders were broad, he was far skinnier. He was dressed in a sharp black suit and crisp white shirt. He hunched slightly, supporting himself on a sleek cane. When he peered down at Calliope with eyes as dark and as dull as coal, she felt a shiver run down her spine. 

“Miss Chloros, I presume?” He asked in a low and rasping voice. 

As she stood and stared with her mouth still hung open, she noticed how lopsided his face was; one side was heavily scarred. When the only response Calliope gave was a strained croak, the man leant his ghoulish face closer. 

“Miss Calliope Chloros?” 

From behind her, the sound of the bathroom door opening caused both she and the stranger to divert their attention down the hallway. 

Sam stood blinking, hair wet and with a towel wrapped around his waist. 

“Heya, dad.”


	28. Dr W.D Gaster and Family

Dr W.D Gaster’s unannounced arrival had caused quite a stir in the apartment. Upon seeing his father’s looming silhouette fill the doorway to the lounge, Russ immediately began picking up dirty glasses from the coffee table and rearranging cushions whilst babbling nervously about dinner and traffic and the weather. All the while, his father’s lopsided stare followed him from behind glinting spectacles. 

After greeting his father briefly in the hallway, Sam had slouched off to his room to get changed. Calliope was surprised to see him re-emerge not dressed in his usual sweatpants and baggy t-shirt, but a pair of dark slacks and an ironed shirt. It was quite odd to see him in such garments.

Calliope suddenly felt self conscious as she stood awkwardly in the kitchen dressed in her animal print pyjamas. As Sam passed by the breakfast bar that separated the kitchen from the lounge, he caught her eye and smirked. His expression neither boosted nor diminished her confidence. But as she watched one brother fluster nervously and the other slouch unenthusiastically, Calliope took it upon herself to take control of the unexpected situation. 

“Please, have a seat Mr Gaster,” she smiled, gesturing towards their dining table. 

The hunching man gave a slow nod of acknowledgement before striding over to take a seat, his cane thudding dully against the wood floor as he did so. Russ was somewhere behind her fussing over some wine glasses he had retrieved from the back of the cupboard. Sam was sat at the breakfast bar watching him. He chewed his thumbnail quietly, his eyes glazed over slightly. 

“Would you like a drink?” Calliope asked as Dr Gaster smoothed out the creases in his sharply tailored suit pants. 

“I would, indeed.” He replied, his dark eyes drifting from one son to the next, both of which still had their backs to him.

She listed a short selection of beverages. Black coffee was his choice. Russ needn’t have bothered with the wine glasses he was currently polishing, though Calliope suspected he was merely procrastinating. Were the brothers just going to ignore their father all night? 

With a gently clear of her throat, Calliope turned to Russ. 

“Russ, why don’t you let me finish dinner and take this coffee to your father?” Though she had politely framed the sentence as a question, her fixing viper-head stare made it clear that it was a direct order. When she turned that stare towards the older brother, he finally roused from his trance. After casting her begrudging frowns, both siblings took a seat at the dining table with their dad.

Luckily, every time she made pasta, there was always enough to feed the entire street so one unexpected dinner guest wasn’t an issue. While she stood over her simmering pot of bolognese waiting for the spaghetti to boil, she quietly listened in to the Gaster family’s conversation. 

“What brings you to this part of the city, dad?” Sam asked, fingers pinching at the table cloth. Normally, when Sam felt nervous or uncomfortable, his hands would toy with the inner lining of his jacket pockets. But after having chosen to dress a little smarter upon the arrival of his dad, the overhanging linen would have to do. 

Dr Gaster sipped his coffee before answering. The two brothers exchanged a swift glance in the short silence. 

“Well, you are both all over the news lately...” the slender, suited man eventually replied as he set his mug down. 

“So many different stories from so many different sources...” he peered from one son to the other over his glasses, “I thought I’d come and hear the truth for myself.” 

Russ swallowed audibly while Sam heaved a sigh. He tugged awkwardly at the crotch of his slacks, careful enough so that his dad couldn’t see. Sam clearly still hated the restrictions of formal-wear; even semi-formal wear.

“But first we eat, hm?” Dr Gaster mused, pushing up his spectacles after eyeing his son’s fidgeting.

The first few mouthfuls of spaghetti were eaten in complete silence before Calliope once again initiated the conversation. 

“It’s great to finally meet you, Dr Gaster. I’ve read so much of your work.” 

He set down his fork and dabbed at the corner of his mouth before replying. His sons remained fixated on their plates. 

“Have you now?” That voice. Those eyes. They were nothing like those of his sons. So cold and so dark. Even Sam, whose irises were like ice chips, emitted a twinkling brightness. Dr Gaster’s were like voids. 

Calliope nodded, thankful that her visor concealed the timidness of her own glances. She could feign confidence so long as she kept her shoulders back and voice steady. 

“We studied your work on quirk evolution at the orphanage that I grew up in. Then I picked it back up later on as an extra module at Juggernaut.” 

Perhaps it was due to the fact that half his face was paralysed from the deep scarring that he simply didn’t emote. But the fact he merely stared at her quietly when she relayed this made her shuffle awkwardly. After a moments silence, filled only by the sound of cutlery against ceramic, Dr Gaster spoke up. 

“I must say, Miss Chloros, I find your quirk most fascinating.”

The way he said this made her shiver once more. Sam raised his head and cast a glance around the table. Russ seemed to be holding his breath. 

“Such untapped power...” Dr Gaster mused, his attention now solely on her, his half finished plate of food left forgotten. 

“Do tell, have you ever tried to turn people to stone deliberately? I’m aware when it happened in Japan, it was apparently the result of trauma.” 

Sam set his fork down loudly as he turned to face his father. 

“Dad, please.” He hissed. But Dr Gaster merely held up a dismissive hand, his dark eyes remaining fixed on Calliope’s face. 

“No. No I’ve never tried. Nor would I try. I don’t know why or how it happens but-“

“Then perhaps...” Dr Gaster cut in, his hand going to his glasses as he continued to ignore Sam’s glaring eyes.

“...you should pay a visit to my lab one day. My team and I could run a few tests-“

“Dad! Enough!” This time it was Russ that spoke up. It was the first time Calliope had ever seen anger grace his handsome features. 

“Have you really come all this way just to lure Calli into one of your experiments?” 

Sam’s breathing was shallow as he too stared angrily at their father who remained completely unfazed by the frostiness around the table. Calliope swallowed awkwardly as she looked from one face to another. 

“Actually...” Dr Gaster retorted, removing his glasses to clean them on the table cloth, “I came to visit my sons. Neither of whom seem very keen on speaking to me.”

He gestured to Calliope. “Miss Chloros here is the only one who seems to remember how to have a conversation. Surprising, too, considering how well you spoke in your interviews, Russ. You were very impressive.” 

The news that his father had actually watched his televised interviews seem to have made Russ falter. His lips parted as he made to respond but nothing came out. 

“And Sam...” Dr Gaster began, turning to face his eldest son who’s expression continued to remain austere. 

“I am only suggesting that Miss Chloros take the time to learn more about her quirk and how to control it so as to avoid another repeat of what happened in Japan.”

Sam continued to look unconvinced. 

“After all...” Dr Gaster went on, his voice adopting a lighter note and his dark eyes softening slightly, “I know what it’s like to lose the one you love.”

At this, it was the sons’ turn to ease up. Whether Dr Gaster was using the memory of their mother to win their favour or he was genuinely being sincere remained to be seen. But both Sam and Russ continued to listen intently when their father spoke again. 

“And if what I’ve seen in the media is true, then surely Calliope’s well-being is in your best interests. Is it not? You are romantically involved with this young lady, are you not?” 

Sam’s eyes searched his father’s face before finally heaving a sigh. 

“We appreciate your concern, Dad but-“

“That’s very considerate of you, Dr Gaster.” Calliope interrupted, taking Sam’s hand beneath the table to give it a reassuring squeeze. 

“I’ll consider your offer and get back to you.”

It seemed this was enough for Dr Gaster to end the subject and everyone was finally able finish their plates of food. Mercifully, the rest of the evening went by far more pleasantly. Talk had turned to their experiences at UA and Russ sang the students of Class 1A’s praises while his father listened with a hint of a smile. Even Sam eventually relaxed and answered politely when his father inquired about his and Calliope’s relationship. The only time it ever got awkward again was when Dr Gaster commented on how compatible Sam and Calliope’s quirks would be in regards to if, or when, they had children. 

“Of course, you shouldn’t choose your sexual partners purely based on their quirks...”

Sam had rolled his eyes so hard that his irises had almost completely disappeared into his skull leaving only jet blacks of his eyes; the result made him look far more like his father- who continued his rant about procreating.

“Your mother and I had very different quirks, for example. But luckily for you, Sam...” he cast his eyes towards his eldest son, who’s head lolled with silent discontentment, “they fused together nicely granting you the ability to summon your ultimate move...”

Dr Gaster took another mouthful of cherry pie before adding, “who’s name I seriously wish you’d change. GasterBlaster, honestly.” 

Calliope couldn’t help but smirk at this, as did Russ from across the table. Sam tugged at the crotch of his slacks again.

Once dessert had been finished and cleared away, Dr Gaster declined another coffee and announced that he would be heading back. The team accompanied him to the front door to bid him goodbye. To Calliope’s surprise, he embraced both his sons warmly before also pulling her into a one armed hug, the other arm leaned heavily against his cane.

“It was a pleasure to meet you, Miss Chloros.” He said as he pulled away. 

“Please do continue to watch over my sons.” 

And with a final firm grasp of her shoulder, a gesture Russ had clearly inherited from him, he turned and left. 

As soon as the dull thud of his cane faded down the corridor, Russ let out a low whistle while Sam quietly cursed. 

“The Great W.D Gaster...”

”Charming fellow.”

”Boys...” 

Later that evening, once the dishes were cleaned and put away, the three of them reclined along their couch, half-watching the images that flashed across the T.V screen. Calliope lay against Russ while Sam dozed quietly against her; he’d changed back into his comfortable clothes after having sworn to burn the slacks the next morning. She ran her fingers through his snowy white hair while Russ clicked idly through the channels. 

“Russ...” Calliope called softly, placing her free hand over his, ceasing the movement of his finger.

He grumbled his acknowledgement and she felt him turn his face to look at her. 

“What’s wrong?” She asked, taking the T.V remote from him and hitting the mute button. The only sound that could be heard once the laugh track from the sit-com was cut off was Sam’s gentle snoring. 

“What do you mean?” Russ retorted, sitting up slightly causing all three of them to shift. Sam grumbled in his sleep as Calliope’s legs moved beneath his resting head. 

She sighed and laid her head back against Russ’ chest. 

“I can tell something is on your mind; your hands won’t keep still.” 

This time, it was Russ’ turn to sigh. 

“I was just thinking about what dad said about your quirk.” He uttered, titling his head to rest his cheek atop her head. 

“About me learning to control it? The part that can turn people to stone?”

She felt him give a slow nod. 

“Do you think I should accept his offer?” She whispered, watching her fingers curl into Sam’s hair. 

Russ paused, shifting again. 

“I can’t make that decision for you, Calli.”

A sigh. A stroke of a face. A moments silence. 

“I’ll call him tomorrow.” She whispered, “and tell him that I’m not interested.” 

Russ inhaled, nodded, exhaled. 

“Okay then.”

And as they joined Sam in the peaceful realm of sleep, Calliope knew that her decision was a sound one. For how could trauma and sadness find her now?


	29. Brotherly Love

It took all of Calliope’s strength not to take a photo of the sight before her and send it to the Press. 

After having slipped free from between their sleeping bodies, Calliope could only giggle quietly at the brothers’ new position on the couch where they had all fallen asleep last night. 

The siblings now lay against one another; Sam nestled between his younger sibling’s long legs, his back resting in his lap and the back of his head flush against his chest. 

Still grinning at the adorable sight, she left them to snooze while she carried out her morning routine. After working out and showering, she was surprised to see they hadn’t moved an inch. She glanced occasionally over at them while she drank her coffee and read the newspaper, smirking every time one of the brothers would mumble in their sleep. At one point, Russ had draped an arm around Sam prompting a contented coo from the older sibling who was used to Calliope’s early morning touch. Little did he know, Calliope’s fingers were in fact clicking away on her phone, storing photos of the sleeping siblings in an album she’d reserve for blackmail and birthdays. 

When the Skelebros finally did rouse, the racket that followed had caused a cluster of gulls on their balcony to take flight. 

Russ had been the first to open his eyes and was appalled to find that his hand had slipped into Sam’s jacket. He had jumped to his feet, sending his bewildered brother tumbling to the floor in a shower of curses. 

“Were you stroking my hair, bro?” 

“You were the one snuggling up to me!”

“I’d say the snuggling was reciprocated.” 

“Lies.”

“I have proof.”

“Oh boy...”

Dr Gaster had been disappointed to hear of Calliope’s refusal to accept his offer. But he remained professional and polite when he informed her that the doors to his lab would remain open if ever she sought his assistance. Before hanging up the phone, he asked that she pass his regards to his two sons. Part of her wondered how he would react if she sent the photo of them cuddled up on the couch to him. It was hard to imagine him laughing, but what father wouldn’t at the image of his two fully grown sons? 

The months rolled on. Their team continued to live, to fight and to laugh together. 

And what with everything seemingly falling into place, it felt like the right time to write a letter to some old friends. 

After all, there was some particularly good news that they wanted to share and they wanted to be the ones to share it before the Press got wind of it...


	30. American Dream

Mornings were growing increasingly more subdued, what with the intensity of their training and studies growing; everyone was too tired to even talk. 

Their third year at UA had been one series of challenges after another. Deku and his fellow classmates had been pushed to their limits in the build up to their final exams. It seemed that their last summer at UA would be their hardest yet. 

As they gathered in their classroom to await the arrival of Mr Aizawa, only a few grumbling greetings sounded. 

“I slept like a baby last night. So how come I still feel tired?” Kaminari groaned into his arms as he laid his head on the desk. 

“Yesterday afternoon was exhausting. I feel so drained,” Ochako sighed, pouting her lip childishly. 

Indeed it had been. Gang Orca had put them all through a gruelling plethora of tasks that had run late into the night. Deku hadn’t even had the energy to shower that night. He was thankful everyone was too depleted to get up and greet him. He didn’t exactly smell too great. 

Only Bakugo seemed to have enough energy to bellow as he taunted them all for their weakness. 

“Bunch of whiny extras! This is what it means to be a hero!”

When Mr Aizawa finally showed up and took his spot at the front of the class, all tired eyes turned to him. He relayed some brief updates on the movements of a minor group of villains, then touched on some local news. Most of it went over the class’ head.

It was only when he started to hand out coloured envelopes to each student that their interest in his monologue spiked. 

“Also, these arrived for you all this morning along with an additional bit of information regarding your summer holidays.” 

Deku frowned curiously at his own powder blue envelope. His name was printed on the front in silver ink. He turned it over in his fingers as Mr Aizawa went on.

“There’s to be a special event happening this summer and Class 1A and it’s teachers have been asked to attend.” Aizawa said matter-of-factly as he made his way back to the front of the room. 

“Over the holidays? You’ve got to be kidding me...” Sero grumbled, “are we ever gonna get a break this year?” 

“What could it be? I haven’t heard anything about an event...” Deku muttered to his neighbour. 

But as the first few envelopes were torn open, the apprehensive mood of the class took a 180. 

Mina and Hagakure were the first to squeal in delight.

“Oh my god! Sans and Calli are getting married!” The pink haired girl cried, kicking her feet happily as she clutched the wedding invitation to her chest. 

“What?” Kirishima exclaimed, his eyes scanning over his own letter, “how come we haven't heard about this until now?”

“I guess we’ve all just been so busy-“ Deku began, his own face tugging into a smile at the elegant, silver script. He couldn’t believe it; he’d been invited to the wedding of two of America’s most famous heroes! 

“Everything has been paid for by the Skelebros. All you need to do is clear your calendars and pack your bags. Those of you who are still 17 will need your parents permission...”

Mr Aizawa’s speech was like a dull drone in the back of Deku’s reeling mind; he was far too busy fantasising about how many other pro heroes would be attending the big event for him to pay attention. And he was going to see Papyrus, Sans and Calliope again...

Later that day, the class gathered around Todoroki’s laptop and scrolled through some articles about the wedding. 

“I still can’t believe we never heard about it until now!” Yaoyorozu commented over Todoroki’s shoulder as he clicked on a link. 

“I know, right?” Mina replied, “it even says here that they got engaged 4 months ago!” She pointed at the computer screen that read in bold; 

‘Sam Gaster, also known as Sans and the eldest member of the Skelebros, was spotted proposing to his former apprentice, turned fellow teammate Calliope, also known as the hero Medusa...’

Accompanying the short article was a series of grainy photos of the couple. It appeared that they had gone on a romantic retreat, hoping to avoid the prying eyes of the media. However, judging from the hazy photos, the paparazzi must have found the secluded location and secretly snapped the private moment. Deku almost felt angry for them, had his curiosity not been piqued; it shamed him to admit that taking a sneak-peak into the private lives of pro heroes was quite appealing. 

Impatient with Todoroki’s slow scrolling, the girls pushed forwards and took over the laptop to go through the photos of the proposal, cooing and sighing happily as they did so. 

One shot showed the couple sat close together on the balcony of a hotel room. They were huddled beneath a blanket beside a large telescope. Sans was pointing his finger skyward while Calliope rested a book in her lap. It seemed the couple had been stargazing. Deku vaguely remembered Papyrus mentioning that Sans used to study astronomy. Perhaps he was teaching Calliope how to read the stars.

The other shots showed Calliope with her eye pressed into the lens of the telescope...

Sans reaching into his pocket...

Sans slipping out from the blanket while Calli continued to look through the lens...

Sans getting down on one knee...

“Ohh!” Ochako sang, “she had no idea!” 

The last shot was the one the Press used as the feature photo. It showed Calliope with her hands over her face as Sans grinned his trademark grin up at her. In his hands he held a small box that cradled a ring who’s jewel was as bright as the stars above them. 

“How romantic!” Hagakure and Mina purred, gazing dreamily at the photo. 

“I’m so happy for them!” Ochako proclaimed, her hands pressed at her pink cheeks.

“I still can’t believe we’re invited!” Sero commented from behind them. 

Not only had the girls been invited to the wedding, Deku heard them chirping excitedly about the fact they were also all to be bridesmaids. Calliope had included a handwritten letter stating that the girls were like the sisters she’d always wanted, but never had, and that she’d be honoured to have them stand by her side as she took her vows.

“This.Is.Amazing!” Mina squealed, dancing around the common area with the letter still in hand.

After receiving the news of the wedding, many of the students could barely contain their excitement for the rest of term. 

They were set to fly out to the states on the first weekend of the summer holidays. Though they continued to study and train hard in preparation for their final exams, the news of the wedding gave them all something to look forward to and ease the stress of their final year. 

Upon hearing the news, Deku’s elated mum had fussed over him as the date neared. She had accompanied him to buy a new suit and even made him trim his hair.

“I can’t believe my boy is already rubbing shoulders with international heroes!” She chirped as she held up two ties against his neck; she eventually chose the green one...

On the day of the departure, the class all met up at the gates of UA. The American team had arranged two mini buses to take them all to the airport. As expected, the entire trip was filled with excited chatter that only grew in volume when Midnight announced that they’d be taking a private jet. 

Deku couldn’t help but be impressed by the grandeur of it all. In Japan, although Pro Heroes were highly regarded and boasted a lot of fame, many of them continued to live relatively modestly. But as he cast a look around the sleek interior of the jet, Deku soon realised that American heroes lived more like A-list celebrities. 

Midnight sat near the cockpit cradling a flute of champagne and flicking through a magazine. She had spent the first hour of the flight flirting with the co-pilot. Aizawa slept by the window seat while All Might passed though the aisle on occasion to chat to the giddy students. Some were giddier than others. Bakugo, for instance, was silent for most of the trip, sitting on a row by himself with his headphones in. When Ochako asked him if he was exited to see the American heroes again he merely grunted and closed his eyes. The fact he actually agreed to attend the wedding betrayed his uncaring exterior however. 

Their jet touched down early in the morning. Though Deku had barely slept during the flight, he felt wide awake as they descended the stairs towards another set of private vehicles. This really was a taste of how the other half lived. He glanced over at Ochako and smiled at how clearly awed she was by the whole experience. Her eyes seemed to glitter in the bright, morning sun. 

After a short drive through the city, passed tall, swaying palms and long golden beaches, they pulled up to the hotel the Americans had chosen for them. It was an immense white building with more windows than Deku could count, each one reflecting the view of the ocean. Even Yaoyorozu was stunned by its shining facade and stunning location. 

As the Class handed their bags to the hotel staff, a loud voice sounded from the top steps to the foyer. They turned their heads in unison and collectively beamed at the sight of Papyrus walking towards them with arms open in greeting. 

The girls were the ones who rushed to meet him halfway. When they threw their arms around him as a group, almost sending him toppling backwards. 

“Ah! It’s good to see you too, girls!” He replied to their excited mix of salutations. 

He greeted the UA staff next, shaking Aizawa and All Might’s hands while chastely returning Midnight’s busty embrace. 

“Where’s Sans and Calli?” Iida asked after being the last of the boys to shake Papyrus’ hand. 

Papyrus smiled as he lead them into the dazzling foyer. 

“They’re both busy with the final wedding arrangements. They’ll be meeting us later for dinner.” 

He walked them to the front desk and helped them all get checked in. While he did so, Deku took a moment to compose himself. The foyer was spectacular with its highly polished floors and indoor water feature. The ceiling seemed to stretch for miles and from it hung a glittering chandelier. The delicate scent of roses hung in the air. 

Once everyone had their room keys, Papyrus turned to them and clapped his hands together.

“Well, I imagine you’re all eager to get settled into your rooms. So, why don’t you all get freshened up and comfortable and we’ll meet up again his evening, okay?” 

Mina pouted. “Are you not staying with us?” 

The younger Skelebro shook his head. 

“I have a few errands to run, as well as my patrol to do. But don’t fret, we’ll be seeing a lot more of each other while you’re here!” 

Their rooms were just as impressive as the foyer. Deku was sharing with Todoroki and Iida. Their beds were dressed in soft, white linens and their view of the beach was serene. The slight, salty tinge to the air when they stood on their balcony was delightful. 

Aizawa informed them all during a quick visit to each room that they all had access to the pool, the indoor spa, the bar and restaurant and the gym. He also found it necessary to point out that, just because they were on holiday, their training and studies had not stopped; they were still in their final year at UA after all. Most of the students took to the gym after his unkind reminder. 

After some hand-to-hand sparring with Todoroki and Ochako, (the use of quirks was forbidden in the gym), Deku headed back to his room to take a shower. The bathroom was like no other he had seen. It was so modern and sleek! As he stood under the hot water that cascaded over him like a tropical waterfall, the cliché thought of ‘I could get used to this’ clouded his mind as easily as the steam clouded the mirrors. 

Dinner was reserved for 6pm. And it couldn’t have come any sooner as, by the time Deku had chosen what to wear to head into the elegant venue, his stomach had begun to growl as loudly as an irritated Bakugo. 

It was only after they had all taken their seats at the long table and ordered their drinks that the American team finally arrived. 

Once again, the girls were the first ones on their feet. They rushed towards Sans and Calliope, almost causing Aizawa to lose his drink, and threw their many arms around them.

“Heh heh. Heya everyone!” Sans chuckled over the girls’ shoulders.

The rest of the class called their greetings and congratulations from their seats, except All Might, who rose to shake the oldest Skelebros’ hand. 

Calliope was nearly in tears at their warm greeting. She wiped the corner of her eyes with one hand while Mina grasped at her other to ogle her engagement ring. 

“Oh my god! It’s so beautiful!” She chimed, her dark eyes reflecting the diamond she was admiring. Sans stood grinning at Calliope’s side, clearly impressed with himself. 

“Heh. Not bad, hey ladies?” 

As they ate their food, Deku tuned in from one conversation to another from his seat between Iida and Todoroki. The UA teachers were sat chatting with Papyrus about his recent accomplishments. The youngest Skelebro had recently overtaken his older brother in the billboard charts and was inching ever closer to becoming part of the top 10 heroes in America. He was currently in 11th position. 

Calliope and the girls were looking at photos of the girls’ bridesmaids dresses. The bride-to-be was apologising for having chosen them in advance but the UA girls didn’t seem to mind as they cooed happily at her choice. 

Despite his act of indifference for the entire journey here, Bakugo was now conversing amicably with Sans. Deku couldn’t quite make out the subject but, judging from their contrasting expressions, Sans was clearly doing his usual routine of teasing the younger male. Bakugo seemed to be taking it well, and simply clicked his tongue and rolled his eyes. 

Once dinner was over and everyone returned to their rooms, Deku took a moment to gaze out at the ocean view before getting into bed. After everything that had happened with the American heroes back in Japan, he felt his heart swell with the knowledge that life was now treating them kinder.


	31. Look at Me

The wedding was due in three days. It seemed the whole of America wasn’t going to let anyone forget it. Three days until the most highly anticipated event of the year. Although there had been pro hero marriages before, Sans and Calliope’s relationship seemed to have caught the hearts of the public more than any other. And looking back at all that had happened, Deku could see why. Although, as he sat eating breakfast by the pool with his classmates, it seemed most of the articles in the magazine he flicked through chose to focus more on the raunchy than the romantic side of things. 

“It’s crazy, isn’t it?” Yaoyorozu scoffed as she glanced down at the page Deku was reading. 

Deku looked up at her with a mouth full of croissant, “hm?”

She rolled her eyes before continuing. 

“I just think it’s ridiculous that despite Sans and Calli having gone through so much together, not only as a couple but as a team, that the media chooses to write articles like that!” She gestured irritably at the croissant flake covered page on Deku’s lap. 

Deku nodded in agreement as Ochako came over and snatched up the magazine. As her eyes scanned the words, her face crumpled into a frown. 

“Seriously? Urgh...” She grunted, handing the magazine to Mina who reacted in the same way. 

The article in question featured an image of Calli and Papyrus at lunch together. Papyrus was doing his usual gesture of placing a hand at her shoulder as Calli laughed openly at something he had said. The headline suggested a possible love triangle or suspected infidelity. 

“Honestly, there’s not a single thing in here about what happened to the team in Japan! Or how hard the team worked to recover from it all!” Mina cried angrily. She stalked off to nearest trash can and unceremoniously stuffed the magazine in. Bakugo eyed her the entire way, his intense eyes fixated on the magazine as if it were a mortal enemy, as if he were trying to set it alight through will power alone. 

Though Deku chose to keep the information to himself, he had in fact overheard the hot-headed blond speaking quietly to Calliope the other day in the corridor. She had asked him how he was doing both at school and in general. Bakugo had answered her without a trace of anger or frustration in his voice. It was rather strange to hear actually. Towards the end of their short catch up, Calliope had leaned in and embraced him. Deku saw her whisper something in his ear but didn’t quite catch it all. Bakugo simply responded with a gruff ‘you’re welcome.’ But what had she thanked him for? Deku didn’t have much time to dwell on the question as, after having cupped his cheeks and planting a laughing kiss on his forehead, Calliope had turned and began to walk towards Deku’s hiding place. He had retreated back into his room with the image of Bakugo’s grumbling face after receiving Calliope’s playful kiss in his mind. That, along with the burning curiosity about what it was she had thanked him so graciously for. 

Over the next three days, Deku’s curiosity was quickly quelled by how busy Papyrus kept them all. The younger Skelebro loved playing the role of host and tour guide and took the students to all his favourite places in the city. When on occasion, Papyrus couldn’t attend, it was left to All Might to escort them all from place to place. It seemed All Might’s fame still carried throughout America. He was the only Japanese hero the American public seemed to recognise, other than Hawks who made a brief appearance one night at dinner. The winged hero had brought wedding gifts for Sans and a blushing Calliope and had apologised for not being available to attend the wedding. When Hawks had teasingly stated that, although he couldn’t make this wedding, he would most certainly be attending Calliope’s next one, Sans had squinted at him over his can of beer. 

“What next one?” Calliope had replied innocently. 

“Why, our wedding of course!” Hawks had grinned, winking an eye and kissing her hand. 

Those around the table brave enough had laughed at Hawk’s joke, others laughed at Sans’ face; the eldest Skelebro was chewing his cheek as he watched Hawks laugh heartily. Calliope had turned bright pink beneath her visor as she sheepishly attempted to chastise the Winged Hero. 

After slapping a hand on Sans’ back and congratulating them nevertheless, he had taken off as quickly as he had arrived. 

While the students explored the city with either Papyrus or All Might as their guides, many people approached them for photos and autographs. Others approached them in a sly attempt at gaining information on the wedding. But everyone’s lips remained sealed. Unlike what happened with the proposal, Sans and Calliope wanted to make sure the ceremony would remain a private affair. 

When one particular group of unrelenting photographers peppered them with questions on their way to get lunch, Bakugo had barked loudly at them to ‘piss off, or else’, his hands sparking. They had soon scurried away leaving Deku to nervously wonder if the ill-tempered blond would be in tomorrow’s headlines. 

Soon enough, the UA students had visited every museum, gallery, cafe and restaurant in the vicinity. Everything felt so different from what they were used to in Japan. Everything in this city, from the scenery to the people, appeared a little brighter, a little louder, a little faster. 

And then came the big day. 

On the morning of the wedding, Deku awoke to the sound of excited voices in the corridor. Not long after, Iida had bounded out of bed and began to bark orders at everyone. He made sure that everyone was awake, showered, dressed and fed and had ushered them into the foyer just in time for the chauffeurs to pick them up. The journey to the venue had taken them way out of the city towards rolling fields and lush valleys. Luckily, they hadn’t been followed by any unwanted paparazzi or reporters as they pulled up to a gorgeous outdoor location. The weather couldn’t have been better. The sun shone brightly and the wind blew softly. The smell of flowers greeted them as they made their way through an elegant garden. Soft, tinkling music filled the air as the guests took their seats. Unlike the glitz and glamour they had experience over the past 4 days, Deku was surprised to see that the mood and aesthetic for the ceremony was far more relaxed and intimate. 

The girls, all prettily dressed in their pastel blue gowns, whispered excitedly with the Skelebros at the front of the venue. Sans looked almost unrecognisable in his suit. Though Deku had seen him in formal attire at their farewell ball back at UA, this time he had clearly pulled out all the stops; most likely encouraged by his stylish younger brother. The groom wore a sophisticated three piece suit in charcoal black. His sleek tie and elegant boutonnière picked out the colour of his light eyes as they scanned the growing crowd. When his hand went up to run through his uncharacteristically styled hair, Papyrus swatted it back down. 

The younger brother, and unsurprisingly Sans’ best man, wore a matching suit, though his tie was in a bright shade of crimson, similar to the scarf he wore with his hero attire. Though it was his older brother’s wedding day, it seemed that Papyrus was for more nervous about the event than Sans was. His eyes flitted from face to face while his fingers twisted at his cufflinks. 

Deku was overwhelmed by the amount of famous American heroes and celebrities that were attending the event. He immediately recognised the unmistakable, pointy toothed grin of Papyrus’ old mentor, Undyne the Undying. She was a tall and muscular woman, whose entire body was covered in blue scales. She had fins in the place of ears and long red hair pulled back into a high pony tail. She wore her trademark eyepatch, covering one of her bright yellow eyes, and her hero attire of gleaming steel armour. When she placed a clawed hand on Papyrus shoulder, he ceased his fiddling and managed a weak smile. 

Dr Gaster, the Skelebros’ hard-faced father and renowned scientist, was sat near the front. He had an eerily intimidatingly aura about him that clashed somewhat with the whimsical scenery. The man would have looked more at home attending a funeral, either as the corpse or the undertaker.

Deku also spotted the spider girl Muffet; a famous pastry chef who was known for her ruthless business skills. She was both cute and intimidating at the same time, blinking her many eyes and turning her dainty head. And when the small spider girl gasped at what she saw, every other head turned too.

The soft melody from a grand piano began to play as Calliope appeared in the archway. She stood alone, having no one to walk her down the aisle. But, as she stood with her head raised and her shoulders back, she didn’t seem to care in the slightest. After all, with every step she took down the aisle, she was leaving her lonely past further and further behind and inching ever closer to a brighter future. 

She was a vision in her satin sheath gown. Her long hair was coiled like a serpent and decorated with gold embellishments. Deku remembered the first time he’d fallen victim to her quirk by accident, how he’d initially thought he had been paralysed by her beauty. This time, it was certainly the case. As she glided by him, he envisioned a gentle goddess.

Papyrus was already in tears, dabbing his eyes with a silk handkerchief, while Sans’ grin had never looked wider, his eyes never more awake as he watched his bride to be mount the steps to join him. 

Her heart was beating like the wings of a humming bird. By the time she reached the top step and turned to face her husband-to-be, Calliope feared she might faint. Her hands trembled as they clutched her bouquet, as did her lips from beneath her long veil as she exhaled shakily.

And when Sam reached out a hand, her breath caught in her throat. Tentatively, he took hold of her veil and lifted it over her head. She felt her shoulders tense as he did so. 

Beneath her veil, she wore a custom made visor similar to the one Yaoyorozu had crafted for their farewell ball back in Japan, only this one was an elegant shade of ivory. 

When Sam smiled at her, she felt her nerves slip away from her body as easily as his fingers did from her cheek. She had been too lost in his handsome smile to notice he had taken hold of her visor with his other hand. And when he pulled it gently from her face, she instinctively shut her eyes. 

“Sam! What-“ She began in a hushed voice, but the feeling of his hand squeezing hers cut her short. 

“Look at me, Calli.” Sam’s voice called softly in the darkness. Another squeeze of her hand. 

“Trust me.”

Hesitantly, she obliged and let her eyes flutter open. 

“Heya, beautiful.”

That grin. That lazy, boyish grin that never failed to brighten her day. Those eyes. Those tired-looking eyes that had seen her at her best and her worst, her strongest and her weakest, clothed, naked. Those eyes that had seen all of her.

Those eyes were staring straight back at her. She couldn’t quite believe it. Her hands reached for his face to touch lightly at his cheek, then down to his neck, his shoulders. His body was relaxed, his face was in motion; chuckling softly at her reaction. Russ had lent forwards and took the visor from Sam. Even Russ didn’t tense up when she caught his affectionate glance. 

“But how?” She whispered to Sam, her eyes wide with astonishment. They still had no effect on him. And when he jerked his head towards the smiling crowd, she found the reason why. 

Seated in the third row was Aizawa, his eyes aglow and fixed solely on her. A whimper escaped her lips as she looked from the UA teacher to Sam.

Finally...

Finally Aizawa had chosen to use his quirk on her. She remembered the first time she had met him when she was still in school. She had begged him to use his quirk on her just so she could experience speaking to someone whilst looking them in their eye. He had refused her then, stating that to do so would only add to her hatred of her quirk. Instead, he told her that she should learn to master it, to respect it.

But today, today on her wedding day, he finally granted her request. Today she would look Sam Gaster in the eye when they exchanged their vows. 

Unbelievably, Aizawa managed to cancel her quirk for the entire ceremony, though Calliope did dip her head every now and again so as to give him a moment of relief. 

By the time the ceremony reached the exchanging of the vows, Calliope was crying. It had been Russ who had set her off. Sam, on the other hand, only continued to smile as Calliope repeated her promises back to him. Although, as he leaned in to kiss her once the vows were made, Calliope did notice his eyes glisten slightly beneath the twinkling lights. The image resembled that of when he had gotten down on one knee beneath the starry night sky and asked for her hand in marriage. 

Their lips met to a deafening round of applause and cheers. He kissed her softly, almost chastely. Perhaps he was timid about kissing her in front of so many people. She found the thought rather sweet. But the thought that followed it was far from tender; she’d make him make up for it that evening. Perhaps he had read her mind because he shot her a mischievous wink straight after. 

When they turned to face the crowd, after Calliope slipped her visor back on, she couldn’t help but smile at the image of Aizawa administering a generous amount of eye drops to his tired eyes. She made a mental note to thank him as soon as she could for his kind gesture. It was perhaps the best wedding gift anyone could have given her.


	32. Silver and Crystal

The wedding reception was to be held in a magnificent marquee by a vast lake. Candles and fairy lights decorated the area, lighting up the darkness as the guests made their way across the sleek dance floor and towards the neatly dressed tables and chairs. 

Russ noted how perfectly balanced between Sam’s relaxed aura and Calli’s effortless grace the decor was. He stood by the entrance and helped guide the guests to their seats. Once everyone was settled, they welcomed the newly weds with yet another round of applause. They were both positively beaming as they stood side by side, hand in hand. Russ had never seen his brother look so happy as he walked over to embrace them both. 

“Welcome to the family, Calli Gaster.” Russ grinned as he took her into his arms. She returned the hug with a tight squeeze. 

“Thank you!” She cooed before turning to kiss him. 

Russ then turned to his older sibling and slapped a hand on his shoulder. No words were said, the brothers’ eyes conveyed all the sentiment that was needed. 

The teammates then turned back to the still applauding crowd. Sam lead Calliope by the hand to the top table where they joined Dr Gaster, Undyne, All Might, Aizawa and Midnight. Before taking her seat, Russ watched Calliope walk over to Aizawa where she thanked him for his kind gesture during the ceremony. Over the buzz of chatter that floated through the marquis, Russ heard Midnight join in the conversation. 

“I suppose Aizawa is a just a big softie after all, hm?” She flashed a suggestive smirk, “so, will you be taking him with you on your honey moon?” 

Russ rolled his eyes from his end of the table while Sam shook his head beside him. 

“She really is something...” he muttered, as he watched Calliope nervously laugh off the UA teacher’s cheeky comment. 

Aizawa equally looked unimpressed as Midnight laughed loudly. 

After their delicious, three course meal the chiming sound of silver against crystal sounded. The crowd quietened and turned their heads towards the top table where Sam now stood with his glass of champagne in hand. 

His lengthy speech had everyone in both tears of laughter and tears of happiness. Russ had always thought that if his older brother ever gave up being a pro-hero, he’d always have a job as a stand-up comedian. Even his old mentor Undyne, who usually showed disdain for Sam’s unrelenting jokes, laughed loudly at his words. 

When it came around to Russ’ speech, he was pleased to have managed to hold back his own tears whilst causing his steely-faced father to shed a few. Seeing their father actually show emotion even made Sam begin to blink faster. Calliope wrapped an arm around him and rested her head against his shoulder as he swiped discreetly at the corner of his eyes. 

And just when they thought the speeches were over, Dr Gaster took everyone by surprise by rising to his feet. Russ’ eyes widened, as did his brother’s who cast him a bewildered glance down the table. Russ suddenly felt his nerves from earlier creep back up his spine. 

But, after their father cleared his throat and began his own unexpected monologue, Russ was relieved and touched to find that his father had in fact prepared a lovely speech. There was no mention of their lost mother, nor Sam’s choice to abandon his scientific research. Instead, W.D Gaster declared only praise for his two sons and his new daughter in law. When his short but sweet speech was over, both sons rose to embrace their father while Calliope dabbed a napkin beneath her delicate eyewear. 

With stomachs and hearts full, it was finally time to head to the dance floor. The newly weds took their first dance to the same song Present Mic had played for them during the farewell ball. Of course, Calli had lost all recollection of the event which, in Russ eyes, made the scene all the more beautiful. The detail hadn’t gone unnoticed by those who were also present that night. The bridesmaids were all watching with tears in their eyes as Sam lead Calli gracefully across the polished floor. Perhaps they felt the same Deja Vu Russ did. 

The farewell ball, the night before Calliope’s tragic ordeal, seemed so far away. Yet, as the scene of his two teammates resting their foreheads against one another’s repeated itself, Russ couldn’t help but feel a wave of bittersweet emotion flood through him. 

“My my, Papyrus!” Undyne’s voice sounded at his side. 

“You’re an emotional wreck this evening!” 

His old mentor flashed him a toothy grin. 

“C’mon! Let’s get you smiling again!” And without any warning, the tall fish-woman pulled him onto the dance floor.

The sight caused Sam and Calliope to turn their heads and immediately begin to laugh. The pairing of Undyne and Russ was far from graceful. The former was rigid and bulky in her heavy armour and the latter lacked his usual sense of rhythm. But their enthusiasm and broad smiles were contagious and soon enough, more and more feet hit the dance floor. 

As one song rolled into the next, Russ and Sam exchanged dance partners. Undyne towered over Sam by at least a foot as she twirled him roughly in place. Calliope could only join in with Undyne’s merciless laughter as she watched her husband’s face start to turn green. 

“What’s the matter, Sans? I thought you could dance!” The fish-lady taunted as her dizzy dance partner fell against her chest plate. 

As Russ held Calliope against him, her gentle movements made up for his lack of skill. She had enough elegance and grace for the both of them. As he rested his chin atop her still laughing head, his eyes drifted around the room. He was pleased to see that the UA students were enjoying themselves. Some were chatting happily at the tables that lined the dance floor, while others had taken to it. Deku was dancing with a blushing Ochako while Mina lead a chuckling Kirishima around beneath the fairy lights. She was far more gentler with his this time around. 

After finishing his tortuous dance with Undyne, Sam staggered towards the tables and slumped heavily into a seat beside Bakugo who, once again, chose to sit apart from the rest of the crowd. 

“How my brother survived an apprenticeship with Undyne is beyond me,” Sam said with a shake of his head and a swig of the drink Bakugo handed to him. 

“Some could say the same about Calli with you and your brother,” Bakugo grunted through a smirk. 

Sam’s brows shot up towards his hairline; which, thanks to Undyne’s dance routine, had almost returned to its naturally messy state. 

“Was that a joke, buddy?” He asked in theatrical mock surprise. 

Bakugo’s face returned to its usual frown after a roll of his eyes. Sam only laughed. 

“Oh, before I forget...” Sam added, reaching into the inner pocket of his suit. 

“I got you something.” He tossed Bakugo the small gift box which the teen caught deftly with a curious twitch of a brow. 

When he opened the lid, he grunted a laugh. Tipping the two, highly polished pebbles into his hand he cast Sam a subtle grin. Buzz Clack 

“Just keep them away from any compasses, okay?”

Bakugo tossed them up into the air again. Buzz Clack

Another smirk. “Sure thing, Sans.” 

Excited shrieks then snagged their attention back towards the dance floor. Bakugo tucked the gifted buzz magnets into his pocket as he and Sam watched Calliope climb onto the stage. All the girls gathered like pigeons in the middle of the room as Calliope waved her bouquet above her head. 

“Ready?” She called.

She turned her back towards the crowd as she tossed the flowers in a high arch over her head. It soared across the room, narrowly missing the disco ball, before landing directly onto someone’s head. 

Sam barked a laugh as petals showered Bakugo’s blond hair. The teen was momentarily stunned by the sudden impact as he gazed down stupidly at the bouquet in his lap. 

“Heh. Well well...” Sam chuckled as the group of bemused girls looked on. 

“Congratulations.” Came another voice. It was Todoroki, who had returned from the bathroom behind them. 

His comment didn’t sit well with the flustered Bakugo who snatched up the bouquet and threw it at him. The dual-quirked teen caught it before it collided with his face causing squeals to sound from the onlooking girls. Yaoyorozu looked particularly hopeful as she hid her smile behind her hand. 

“I promise I wasn’t aiming for you!” Calliope giggled as she crossed the room towards Sam and Bakugo. The latter clicked his tongue as Calliope began to pluck the stray petals from his hair. He only feebly swatted at her hand as he grumbled at the newly wed’s shared laughter. 

When All Might came to join them and initiated a conversation with the grumpy student, Sam took the opportunity to lead Calliope back to the dance floor as a sequence of upbeat songs began to play. 

It was kind of sad knowing Calliope didn’t remember, but back when their feelings for one another had begun to blossom the first time around, Sam had often taken Calliope dancing. They would drink cocktails and laugh loudly over the music. She would always wear heels and spend a good fraction of the night teasing him about the fact she stood taller than him. But that never stopped him from spinning her body into his and impressing her with a rhythm she thought both brothers lacked. When they were both breathless and in need of some fresh air, they would stand on the terrace and inhale the sea breeze. Sam would chance glances over at her as she watched the noisy world of the city go by. In those quiet moments, he would wonder if he considered her an apprentice, a friend or something more. And when the wind lifted her long, green locks and when the moon glinted off the pretty scales that decorated her bronzed skin, he knew that the answer was something more- far more. 

“Stay with me, Gaster!” Calliope’s playful voice called over the music, snapping Sam out of his thoughts. He didn’t hesitate to take her by the waist.

The girls of UA had wasted no time in dragging Russ into the centre of the room where they began to re-enact the terrible dance moves he had displayed at the farewell ball. He seemed both flattered and embarrassed that they remembered them so well. 

The crowd was large now, many bodies moved along the polished wood underfoot that vibrated from the heavy bass line. The loud music and change of pace suited the younger audience’s energy better. Many of the bolder UA students were dancing with one another, laughing and cheering when someone pulled off a particularly flashy set of moves. 

The quieter students remained at the tables, drinking from their glasses and chatting with friends new and old. Undyne was sat talking with Kirishima and Bakugo, who seemed to be entirely engaged in whatever it was she was saying to him. She did rank 9th in the American billboard charts, after all. She had a lot of knowledge and experience to pass on which Bakugo seemed eager to soak up. 

Dr Gaster was lent on his cane by the drinks table talking to Aizawa and All Might, while Midnight was sat in a darkened corner of the marquee with the spider girl Muffet. Both dark haired women looked rather menacing from their perch in the shadows. Whatever they were discussing, it looked as if world domination could have been the topic. Men didn’t stand a chance. 

As the partying continued late into the night, Sam wasn't surprised to find that, not only could Calliope synch her body with his when they fought as a team, she could also match his movements on the dance floor just as well as she had done before losing her memory. The champagne had caused his usually bashful teammate to ease into the rhythm of the music. Of course, she moved like a snake; her twisting waist and swaying hips were dangerously enchanting. When they danced together in the past, it had always remained playful. But now that she was his wife, he had to make sure to keep his hands from roaming too boldly. He’d have to wait just a little while longer for that...


	33. The Snake and The Skull

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another erotic chapter ;)

It had gone way past midnight by the time Sam lifted Calliope off her feet and over the threshold of their hotel room. Her gentle laughter filled the room as he spun her gracefully, her high-heels falling from her feet as he did so. He completed the circle with a delicate kiss before carrying her over to their bed. She pressed her forehead to his as he whispered softly to her. 

“I love you, Calli.”

As he lay her down, he watched as she plucked a rose petal from the white, cotton sheets. 

“How romantic,” She grinned, flicking the petal at him. It floated gently back down to settle among the others that scattered around their bodies. 

The elegant, rose filled room also came with more champagne which Sam spotted by the bedside table. But when Calliope pulled back the long skirt of her dress to reveal her garter wrapped thigh, the alluring sight was all Sam needed to get him feeling drunk. He returned the seductive smirk she threw him at him before reaching out to her. But instead of reaching for the lace wrapped about her leg, he gripped her hips and flipped her onto her front. 

She gasped at the sudden action, the sound shortly followed by that of her zipper sliding down her back. He took his time pulling off her dress, using it to plant soft kisses along her bare shoulders and down her spine. She laughed lightly when his lips brushed her in the places he had learnt were ticklish; the nape of her neck and the curve of her waist. He always enjoyed the way it made her shiver when he touched her there. He spoke softly to her as he removed his own clothes; complimenting her, praising her, loving her, promising her. She’d turned over to watch him, reaching out to touch his scar. It was his turn to shudder then. 

When their bodies next pressed up against one another, the only fabric present was the sheets beneath them and the garter on Calliope’s thigh. The same thigh that now pressed lightly against his ear as he relished in the muffled sound of her moans. She curled her leg around his neck to draw him closer still. A whimper of delight. A smug growl. 

Her groping hands made his styled hair come undone just as easily as she did against the skilled movements of his tongue. Sam couldn’t help but smile against her as he felt her arch her back to the sound of his name being called. A lick of his lips. Her gentle panting. 

And ohh...they were only getting started. 

As he made his way back up her body, he stopped to take the lace garter in his teeth. Slowly, he pulled it down as she managed a still breathless laugh. It joined the rest of the clothes that littered the hotel room floor, landing on the carpet at the same time his moist lips did hers. 

She tasted good everywhere...

It never ceased to drive him wild.

And when he found himself moving too fast or too hard, it took nearly all of his strength to recompose himself. 

It was their wedding night, after all. Not a weekend where they finally had the apartment to themselves, where groans and cries didn’t need to be bit back or swallowed for fear of their teammate hearing. 

So he steadied himself, loosened his grip and eased the force of his kisses. As he did so, Calliope seized her chance. In one swift movement, she was on top of him. She grinned down at his mirrored expression, her eyes still concealed behind the ornate visor that had been custom made for the wedding. It’s design resembled that of masquerade mask. Sam found the aesthetic unbelievably seductive. 

“You’re so beautiful, Mrs Gaster,” he uttered, hands gliding along her thighs. Her head dipped at the sound of her new title, making him smile at the return of her sheepishness. Gently taking hold of her hips, he lifted her so that he could move into a sitting position. When his back found the cushioned headboard, his lips found hers. He continued to kiss her slowly as he guided her hips back down. Nails dug gradually into his skin the lower she sunk, the further he sunk. 

The break of a kiss, a shared groan of pleasure. 

His hands gripped her hips as he guided her rhythm. Once she was at ease, she moved on her own accord, letting his hands now do the same. 

Tantalisingly slow; she liked to tease. He nipped at her smirking lips when he got the chance. 

Their arms wrapped around one another’s swaying bodies, pulling her into him and he into her.

Closer.

Deeper.

Louder.

Oh how he liked it when she grew louder...

In her haze of pleasure, Calliope felt her head fall back. Sam wasted no time in busying his lips against her throat when it revealed itself to him. The feeling only drew more moans from deep within her. She felt his lips curl against her skin. Smirking. Of course. He always liked to hear his name escape her.

The next time his lips moved, he was uttering encouragement against her ear; just like this, just like that, one more time, a little louder for me, that’s it...

Calliope had always loved the way that, depending on the circumstances, Sam’s broad city accent could make her laugh just as easily as it could make her blush. In this moment, it would be her undoing. 

The rock of her hips quickened, driven by the seductive whispers that now poured unashamedly from her husband’s lips.

A prince during the ceremony, with sleek locks and tailored suit.

Sam Gaster during their wedding night, with messy hair and scarred chest. 

She felt his fingers curl tighter into the curve of her hips and knew, even before he groaned her name in warning, that he was as close as she was. 

That accent. He was the only one who pronounced her name like that. Sometimes, when he called out to her, the sound of it made her giggle. But on this occasion, it made her almost scream. 

Two bodies tensed, trembled, twitched. 

They held each other tightly until they caught their breath, riding out the waves of pleasure with kisses and cooing. 

Once he felt her body relax, Sam rolled Calli over to place her back into the petals. When she removed her headpiece, he gently kissed her eyes.

A glass of champagne was passed between them. The bubbles tickled their dry throats.


	34. Missiles and Jaccuzis

That morning, as she ate her breakfast on the balcony, Calliope had made a mental note that she wouldn’t cry.

But as she embraced every UA student in turn, she felt the familiar sting of in her eyes. By the time she released young Deku to the sound of the airport tannoy system informing them that their gate was soon to close, her face glistened with tears.

“Thank you all so much for coming,” she sniffed, watching as her two teammates quickly said their farewells too. 

“We’ll see you all again once you’ve graduated!” Russ said, his voice attempting to sound cheery but the sadness was easily detected in his features. Mina had her arms around him and looked reluctant to let go. 

“You promise?” Hagakure whined, her arms equally going around the younger Skelebro. Soon enough, Ochako joined the hug pile too. 

“Of course!” Russ replied, his voice thick and his eyes shining under the fluorescent lights. 

“Make us proud, kiddos.” Sam grinned, shaking Bakugo’s hand. The blond boy smirked at him, then at Deku who was now blubbering like a baby. 

And when Aizawa hurried them along to catch their plane back to Japan, Calliope sought comfort in her teammates’ embraces as she watched Class 1A turn and leave. 

A lot happened in the weeks that followed. Russ not only became part of the top 10 heroes in America, but he also overtook his old mentor Undyne the Undying who publicly announced how proud of him she was, and how he should make the most of the glory while it lasted because she’d be coming for him. 

Due to Papyrus’ rise in fame, and the fact that Sam and Calliope were now married, it was finally time for the team to switch up their living arrangements. Initially, Calliope had been quite hesitant about the idea as, although it had its downsides on occasion, mainly regarding when and where she and Sam could be intimate, she actually enjoyed living as a team. However, when the change simply turned out to be Russ moving into the apartment on the opposite side of the corridor to them, Calliope was delighted. And admittedly, a little jealous; his balcony was way bigger than theirs.

Many evenings were spent in each other’s kitchens and lounges. They took turns to host dinner parties, which Dr Gaster would attend every now and again, and tell each other what they’d done that day now that Russ was spending more and more time working solo. 

They still worked as a team most days of the week, patrolling the city and combining their abilities to take down larger gangs of villains across the state. But a few months after Sam and Calliope’s honeymoon, the couple made the decision to limit their hero work to local areas only. 

The honeymoon itself had been quite the ordeal. And that was putting it lightly.

They had travelled to a different state to spend some time away from the noise of the city. However, peace and quiet was snatched from them a mere two days after arriving.

”Have fun, you two. And drive safe!” Russ called to them as Sam and Calliope pulled out of the garage in the car they’d rented for the week. One of the few conditions Calliope had set when it came to planning their honeymoon was to avoid flying at all costs. Sam had teasingly suggested they borrow his younger sibling’s beloved red sports car, but Russ had simply scoffed loudly over his plate of spaghetti. 

“In your dreams, brother.”

As Sam and Calliope hit the open road, they switched on the radio and wound down the windows. Sam drove easily with one hand on the steering wheel, the other at her thigh as they both sang along to old country songs. He made her laugh with his exaggerated southern accent.

“You’d make a terrible cowboy,” she giggled, after he sang the last note of the chorus to a song about whiskey and heartbreak. Other than the ridiculous accent, Sam’s singing wasn’t too bad. 

“But I’ve already bought some boots.” He grinned, eyes darting towards a road sign as they neared a junction. 

Calliope scoffed, “well I hope you kept the receipt.”

Three country songs, a rendition of bohemian rhapsody, an impressive freestyle rap and one cheesy pop song later, the couple arrived at their luxury log cabin, befit with jacuzzi and sauna. The quaint location was situated up in the mountains, where they were surrounded by forests and valleys. There was little to no signal, but neither of them cared. A week without their phones going off every half an hour would be paradise. 

The first night was spent out on the decking, eating way too much food and drinking far too much wine. That evening, they laughingly stumbled back inside after getting caught in a sudden downpour. After stripping off their wet clothes, they crawled into bed and soon fell asleep to the low rumbling of distant thunder. 

Calliope woke up the next day to the smell of freshly brewed coffee and cooked breakfast. When she offered to help, Sam shook his head and told her to relax in the garden. They ate their toast and eggs under the morning sun, the light scent of last night’s storm only barely clinging to the trees around them where the birds sang blissfully. She could have spent all day curled up on the porch swing, dressed in her fluffy night gown, had Sam not reminded her of the jacuzzi. 

And when the heat of the water enveloped her body while Sam’s mouth and hands greedily explored it, she decided this is where she’d rather spend most of the day instead. 

That night, as she lay in bed, lazy from lounging, leisuring and love-making, she never could have imagined anything could spoil the utter bliss she was feeling.

On the morning of their third day in the cabin, the couple were once again enjoying the afternoon sun on the decking. Everything was peaceful as Sam read his book, occasionally glimpsing over at Calliope while she practised her yoga and smirking every time she caught him looking. 

But the next time they cast each other a look, it was one of pure confusion. 

“What’s that-“ 

But before Calliope could finish questioning the source of the high-pitched whistle, Sam had dove towards her. 

His arms went around her just as quickly as his protective wall of bones encircled them. It shielded them from the blast that obliterated the cabin behind them. The second missile blew the jacuzzi to pieces. 

By the time her ears had stopped ringing, the two villains were already in their garden. Sam turned the bones back to dust as he rose to his feet in front of Calliope who was still processing what had just happened. 

“Bad idea, buddy...” Sam called as the pair of villains approached them. 

Cursing, Calliope immediately recognised who they were. One of the men had a mess of blond hair and wore a mask with a pointed nose. He was extremely lean but was dwarfed by the large, toad-like man next to him. They were both from L.A.

Calliope and her teammates had taken them down around about this time last year. They were meant to be in prison for another 14, so they must have recently escaped. 

“Don’t ‘buddy’ me!” The smaller villain spat, “you know why we’re here!” 

Sam grunted a laugh. 

“Well it’s certainly not to do the housekeeping.” He joked as a large chunk of burning timber crashed behind them where their cabin had once stood. 

Though she admired his ability to remain calm, Calliope figured this was no time for jokes. The pair of villains were clearly here to seek revenge. 

The first time she had encountered them, she and the Skelebros had taken them down as a team. So, as she looked from one leering face to the other, she couldn’t help but feel the prickle of nerves mount her spine knowing that Papyrus wasn’t here to fight with them. 

Wisely, both villains kept their eyes trained on Sam as they began their taunting. 

“Well, well. Someone’s cocky.” The smaller villain snarled.

”Look at you...” the other grunted, “a married man now, ey Sans?” 

”So, you’ve left your little brother to do all the hard work while you go off and play happy families with your pretty, new wife?” 

Calliope glared at them, hoping they’d make the mistake of looking at her. She readied the activation word for her visor on her lips. But alas, they’d fought against her before and knew of her powers. It had been thanks to her petrification that they’d been apprehended the first time around. 

Back then, however, she had had the element of surprise. She had used her eyes to paralyse the big guy, giving Papyrus enough time to incapacitate him with a ruthless blow to the head. Sans had taken the smaller one down by slicing his arms badly enough that he couldn’t lift them, renderings his missile cannons useless; unless he wanted to blow his own legs off. Calliope had grappled him to the floor and secured him in quirk-cancelling cuffs, invented by Dr Gaster, soon after. They’d frogmarched them both to the police station with one of Sans’ GasterBlasters looming over them, mainly in case the big guy made any funny moves. 

“C’mon fellas,” Sam began, holding up his arms in a casual shrug. “We took you both down once already. You really wanna get your asses kicked again?” 

And before they could respond to his arrogance, Sam’s left eye caught ablaze in a flash of gas-fire blue. With a swipe of his left hand, a shower of bone shards littered the garden where they’d just been stood. As the villains leapt around the garden as Sam sent sharp projectiles their way, Calliope couldn’t help but notice that Sam’s usually pin-point precision wasn’t as good as it had been a few weeks back. This was most likely due to the fact that, what with wedding planning and such, he hadn’t been training as much lately.

Sam too, seemed to notice his deterioration in skill. He growled angrily as stray bones pierced the surrounding trees trunks, sending the birds nested within them flying. Sensing his frustration, the smaller villain seized the chance to fire two more missiles towards them. Calliope and Sam leapt out of the way just as the blasts left a crater in the place they had just been stood. 

Calliope was at a huge disadvantage. Her powers and skill depended heavily on stealth. She felt hopeless; they wouldn’t look at her. Instead, they were both focused on Sam, who was only just managing to hold them off. The missiles he could protect them from; there was enough dust, ash and fine debris scattered about them to keep him creating strong walls and sharp projectiles so long as his stamina remained. But he and Calliope both knew that it was the big guy who was going to be the issue. 

Even though he was a big target, his speed and agility kept him from taking any serious hits. The smaller villain used his partner's versatile quirk as protection, riding on his monstrous back so as to avoid all of Sam’s attacks. 

If only Calliope knew the villains’ names. All she’d have to do is get close enough to whisper in their ears...

Surely she’d heard their names at some point?

“Calli! Look out!” 

Another explosion. This time, Sam and Calliope leapt in opposite directions. Fear flashed in Sam’s eyes as he looked over at her from the other side of the garden. This time, it was Calliope’s turn to call to him. 

“Sam!” 

Too distracted by the fear of his wife’s exposure, he had almost missed the sight of two more missiles speeding his way. With a jerk of his hand, he erected a defensive wall just in time. The blasts took out the rental car, the stone pathway, the mailbox...

In the cloud of smoke, Calliope heard her husband cough. Perhaps his hastily created wall hadn’t been thick enough. She hoped he was alright.

As her eyes searched the carnage through the dust and smoke, something snagged her attention. Floating to the ground after being blasted from the mailbox was the singed remains of a newspaper page. 

Her eyes caught sight of the headline; two villains on the run...

Without hesitation, she leapt for it, praying it had the information she needed. Heart hammering and ears ringing, she scanned the blackened remains of the front page. There, in black and white, was one of the villain’s names.

But which one?

She had a 50/50 percent chance of getting it right. So, as she looked up to see Sam fire another shower of rapier-like bones towards the villains, she made the quick decision to take the big guy out first. 

Sam was looking tired. His t-shirt was almost entirely singed off his panting body. But beneath his mess of white hair, his left eye still blazed with determination. Despite the sweat on his brow, he continued to counter every attack they threw his way. But his fatigue was starting to make him sloppy. His next move was mistimed just enough to let a missile blast through one wall of bones, allowing the big guy to burst through the dust and smoke and close his enormous fist around him. No sooner could Sam grunt from the villain’s vice-like grip, he had hurled him like a rag-doll into the tree line. Calliope could only look on in despair as her husband’s body hit a tree trunk with a sickening crash and crumple to the floor. His then limp body rolled down the hillside and came to a stop at the very edge of the garden. Even when she shrieked his name, the villain’s refused to acknowledge her; she knew they were going to make sure Sam was never getting up before dealing with her. Relief flooded her body when she saw his shoulders move and his arms reach feebly underneath him in an attempt to push himself upright.

Calliope couldn’t waste anymore time, she tore towards the villains as the smaller one raised his arms to prepare another duel attack in Sam’s direction. But she wasn’t quick enough. The missiles exploded towards him and, though she felt her heart stop, her strong legs did not. She had faith in her partner who, sure enough, managed to erect a defensive shield in-front of him even though his weakened body remained on the ground. The missiles collided with the wall of bones at the same time Calliope’s foot did with the smaller villain’s face. In that instant, she burned with the rage that came from being so underestimated. They couldn’t and wouldn’t ignore her now.

The smaller villain flew backwards. She took after him. As his back hit the ground, her hands found his chest, she lent in, lips close to his ear. She whispered the name...

He punched her in the ribs.

Dammit. 

She keeled over sideways as he wiggled free from beneath her. 

“Nice try, sweetheart!” He sneered, pointing the barrel of his arm-cannon at her face. He was smart enough to focus his vision away from her eyes. No bother. In one fluid motion, she had grabbed his arm and pulled him into her. He didn’t have enough time to close his eyes before she forced her glare into his. Serpentine irises caught his bewildered eyes. He froze. She rolled. She punched- hard. When his body went limp beneath her, knocked out cold, she turned her attention to the end of the garden where Sam, legs still wobbling slightly, fought back the enormous, toad-like villain.

They were both matched in speed. Even with his energy depleted, Sam’s projectiles were swift and sharp enough to push back the villain’s attempts to advance on him. The monstrous body of the toad-like man was riddled with gashes from Sam’s continuous onslaught. But the snarling mass of muscle didn’t seem to be slowing. 

Neither of them saw her coming. And when she launched herself after kicking off from the trunk of a nearby tree, Sam looked up just in time to see her falter. Despite her efforts, the earlier punch to the ribs had caused her to wince as she attempted her move. She lacked the propulsion needed to carry her onto the villain’s large back as planned. Instead, she just about managed to grip one of his many arms, her sharp nails clawing into his flesh as she landed sloppily against him. Sam called out her name just as the roaring villain shook her off. It was only then, when the villain turned to acknowledge her, that he noticed his partner was out for the count. He swore loudly, his gaping mouth full of menacing teeth. 

Now Sam and Calli had a chance. And after seeing what she’d just attempted, Sam knew Calli’s plan; he knew she needed an opening to get in close. 

“Well, they say three’s a crowd!” The villain snarled, beating his four firsts on the ground. 

“How about we spice up this honeymoon of yours, hm?” 

He went for Sam first who, despite being pushed to his limit, was the last person the villain wanted to turn his back on in that moment. After all, he wasn’t aware that Calliope now knew his name. And turning away from Sam meant risking a slicing, bone-made spear through the back. 

The monstrous toad bounded towards Sam, all fists and teeth and muscle. He swiped his large hand at the same time Sam swiped his own, glowing one. But her husband was severely weakened, and the villain smashed through the feeble projectiles that flew at him. But it didn't matter, because they turned to dust on impact and clouded the villain’s beady eyes and filled his nose and cavernous mouth. He could no longer see, but he could still hear. And his name was the last thing that rang in his ears before his body seized up completely. 

The newly weds sat on what was left of the charred decking of their honeymoon retreat. They passed between them a salvaged bottle of wine that had miraculously survived the attack. The two villain’s bodies lay incapacitated in the obliterated garden in front of them, the open jaws of a GasterBlaster hovering over them. 

As sirens began to sound in the distance, Russ’ red sports car pulled into the singed driveway next to their charred and blistered rental. He was carrying the same newspaper that Calliope had spotted earlier. Clearly, he had come to warn them about the news on the front page. Too little, too late, Calliope thought as she smirked at his bewildered expression between sips of Chardonnay. Sam’s head rested against her shoulder. His t-shirt was in tatters and Calliope’s favourite yoga pants were ripped at the thighs. They were both exhausted and heavily bruised. The wine helped though.

Russ approached them with his hands on his hips and a bemused smile on his face. 

“This isn’t what I meant when I told you both to have fun...”

And despite aching all over, the trio managed to nail a cover of ‘Take me home, country roads’ as they returned home in Russ’ red sports car.


	35. Epilogue

5 years later and she still hated flying. Still, despite her discomfort, Calliope put on a brave face. After all, this was Clara’s first time flying, she didn’t want her nerves to rub off on her.

She had been a little star for the entire trip so far, only making a fuss during take-off. Her father soon calmed her, however, as she buried her little face in his jacket. With some soothing words and gentle encouragement, he managed to get her looking out of the window in no time. She giggled at the clouds that floated below, and was stunned into an adorable silence when the sun began to set, setting the sky ablaze. Calliope gazed affectionately from father to daughter, as they sat cuddled up in the window seat. They had the same hair and cheeky grin, but Clara had inherited Calliope’s olive skin and serpentine eyes. Whether those eyes would possess the same power Calliope’s did remained to be seen; Clara was not yet of age. Quirks tended to manifest around the age of 5. Precious Clara had only been in their lives 4 years. 

4 wonderful years after their almost catastrophic honeymoon. The Gaster family had been delighted by the news.

Calliope had been hesitant to tell Sam at first. But after declining wine at dinner for almost 5 weeks straight, he began to suspect something was up. When she finally confessed to her pregnancy, he had pulled her into a loving embrace and for the first time since knowing him, she’d seen him cry.

Russ and Dr Gaster found out shortly after. They’d been sat around the dinner table at Russ’ apartment. He’d just finished ranting about a particularly stressful day. After serving them all a helping of homemade pie, Sam said that he too had some news to share. Once the declaration of parenthood was made, Russ’ frowning face had split into the brightest smile. He pulled them both against him and peppered them with kisses. 

“I’m going to be a grandfather?” Dr Gaster muttered, his face contorted in a strange mix of confusion and surprise. When Sam grinned in response, Dr Gaster had almost toppled off his chair. When Calliope moved to catch him, he too threw his arms around her. 

“Dear girl! That’s wonderful news!”

And when she saw his face smile broadly for the first time in her life, she finally saw the resemblance he had with his sons. Behind the glasses and the heavily scarred features, was the handsome face of a man who’s day had just been made. 

When they finally touched down in Japan, they were greeted by rain. They bought umbrellas on the way to the train station and huddled beneath them as they waited for their train to slide alongside the platform. Clara held onto her father as the sound of rain, pattering against the floral umbrella she had chosen for him, sent her to sleep. The image would be the first Calliope would take on her phone. And when they took their seats in the first class carriage, the rocking of the train sent Sam to sleep too. 

After sending a message to Russ back in America that they had arrived safely and would soon be arriving in Musutafu, Calliope gently shook her husband awake. It was still raining as they walked towards the campus of UA where the small reunion would be taking place. Calliope offered to take Clara’s small, sleeping form from Sam but their daughter awoke during the exchange. Yawning, she rubbed her sleepy, yellow eyes and asked when they’d be arriving. 

“Almost there, kiddo,” Sam smiled, taking his daughter’s left hand while Calliope took her right. The trip would have only taken 10 minutes had Clara not wanted to jump into every puddle on the way. 

By the time they reached UA, her striped tights were soaked. But their little girl didn’t mind one bit, especially when her eyes fell on the person waiting to meet them at the gates. 

The rain didn’t mater any more, only the sight of her old friend. And oh, how he’d grown! Deku approached them with his arms open wide and his freckled face smiling warmly. He had cut his hair and lost the boyish roundness to his cheeks. The number 1 hero in Japan, tall and handsome, took Calliope into his arms the moment he reached her. Little Clara could only gaze up in amazement as she finally set eyes on her favourite hero. 

“It’s so good to see you! It’s been so long!” He declared, releasing Calliope to shake Sam’s hand. 

“And you...” he bent down to look little Clara in the eye. 

“You must be Clara! I’ve heard so much about you!” 

The small girl shuffled behind her father’s leg, her lips twitching a bashful smile. She had a poster of Deku in her bedroom back in America. She would often imitate his signatures moves in front of the T.V any time he was on it. 

Calliope stooped down and stroked her daughter’s snowy white hair as her father chuckled at her sheepishness. 

“Say hello, Clara!” Calliope encouraged with a smile. The child muttered something that sounded like a greeting as she nestled further into the crook of Sam’s knee.

Deku ushered them inside and out of the rain as he asked Sam about their trip here. As the two men spoke about the bad weather, good traffic and Clara’s great behaviour on the plane, the little girl in question remained timid all the while. She continued to nuzzle her face into her father’s jacket as he carried her across campus towards the main building where Deku lead them. Calliope knew the shyness wouldn’t last long. It was only a matter of time until her daughter’s cheeky Gaster side came out. 

Deku took them to an office and when he pushed open the door, many excited faces turned to greet them. All of which looked both familiar yet different. Despite her timidness, Clara’s eyes stared in awe at the pretty pink haired girl who bounded over to embrace her mum. 

“Oh my god! Calli!” Mina squealed. Calli was glad to see that hadn’t changed. The two women hugged each other tightly as Sam shook the mens’ hands.

”My my, look at you!” Sam grinned as he stepped up to Bakugo. The young man, who had already been a few inches taller than Sam back when he was a teen, was now a foot taller. He grinned down at his old teacher and friend as he grasped him firmly by the hand.

”Nice to see you, nerd.” He jibbed. His eyes then wandered to the little girl in Sam’s arm.

“Huh. Clara, right?” He smiled. And when Calliope appeared at his side to greet him with an embrace, he smirked and said to her, “lucky she got her looks from her mother.” 

Sam scoffed a laugh as Calliope swatted Bakugo on his arm. As an adult, he retained his messy, blond spikes and intense eyes but his aura had gained a certain calmness. Though he was still known to be an explosive, battle-hardy fighter, it seemed Bakugo had matured and grown out of his perpetual anger. 

“Don’t be so mean!” A voice called. And when Sam and Calliope turned to see Ochako’s rosy, yet now more womanly face, they greeted her with warm hugs and beaming smiles. Unlike the boys, Mina and Ochako hadn’t grown much taller but their hips and chests were fuller and their faces had lost their girlishness. Those faces were both smiling into Clara’s as they cooed and complimented her. 

“Well aren’t you just the cutest thing I’ve ever seen!” Mina sang, bopping her lightly on the nose making the young girl giggle. 

“Oh! You have your daddy’s cheeky smile, huh?” Ochako commented. 

And as the exchanges went on, Clara’s courage grew. The compliments given to her most likely helped.

She soon turned up her little chin and grinned impishly, especially when Sam handed her to Deku who balanced her on his hip and told her all about how her mommy and daddy used to teach him when he was younger. The news made Clara seem to swell with pride and admiration. 

The last people to greet them were Aizawa and Todoroki. 

The latter boasted broader shoulders in adulthood, but his stoic face and serious voice remained. Still, he smiled warmly upon seeing his old teachers again. And when Clara innocently mentioned his scar, he humoured her naïveté and told her simply that it was from an accident when he was her around her age. 

And when Calliope introduced her daughter to Aizawa, the curious little child perked up even more.

“My mommy said you were the only man brave enough to look mommy in her eyes!” She said boldly, jutting out her chin making her dad smirk at her funny behaviour. 

“Did she now?” Aizawa replied with a hint of a smile. 

Clara nodded vigorously, her white ponytails bouncing wildly. 

“Even daddy can’t look mommy in her eyes and he’s the strongest man in the world!”

Sam’s smirk was replaced with an affectionate smile. Calliope laughed as she shook her head lightly. Mina and Ochako made quiet noises of contentment at her side. 

“She’s a real daddy’s girl, huh?” Mina commented. Calliope sighed as she nodded. 

”Heh. I’m pretty sure your Uncle Russ could kick my butt these days.” Sam replied to his daughter’s praise. 

“I kicked your dad’s butt once,” Bakugo grinned.

The comment made Clara’s little head spin towards him, almost knocking Sam’s glasses off. He pushed them back up his nose with his free hand as Clara quipped back at the blond male. 

“Nu uh! Don’t believe you!”

Calliope knew how much Sam hated wearing his new glasses as she watched him struggle between adjusting them and holding his squirming child. It was then that Calliope took her from him and sat her on her knee. Though she found her husband handsome in his round reading spectacles, Bakugo had earlier commented that Sam had never looked more nerdy. 

When Bakugo laughed at her brazen retort, Clara stuck out her tongue. Though she didn’t have scales like her mom, she had in fact inherited a snake-like tongue from her grandma. It made her pronounce certain letters with a distinct hiss. Russ always melted every time she said his name; Uncle Russss

”Sweetie, you’ll be the death of me.” He’d say.

And boy, did Clara love her Uncle Russ. 

Even though Papyrus was now the 3rd ranking hero in America, he still found time to babysit his beloved niece. On days when he’d take her to the beach or during nights when he’d sit and watch cartoons with her, Sam and Calliope would go for dinner, drinks and dancing. By the time they’d get back, Clara would still be awake and reluctant to leave her uncle’s place. They still lived in opposite apartments by the beach. Though they rarely worked as a pro-hero team anymore, at least they still got to live closely together. 

With Dr Gaster nearing his retirement, Sam had chosen to step up and take over the reins. How proud Dr Gaster had been to be handing over his lab to his eldest son! Especially since he had been so convinced Sam would never return to science. But the eldest Skelebro had shocked everyone by, not only becoming a fantastic father, but by also throwing himself wholeheartedly back into his scientific research. It didn’t take him long to make a name for himself in the industry. Bakugo relished in the news. Sam was undoubtedly a full time nerd now. But Calliope found the lab coat and glasses combo rather sexy; not that she mentioned it in the conversation. Clara was still present after all. 

As for Calliope herself, she had returned to Juggernaut as one of their teachers and joined the wall of fame next to Sans and Papyrus. She often found herself visiting the glass cabinet during her breaks and smiling fondly at the photo of the three of them together. How far they’d all come...

A lonely, young girl who hated her quirk had become a valiant pro-hero, beloved Juggernaut teacher and proud mother. 

An eldest son who lacked empathy and motivation had become a devoted family man and driven scientist, continuing the Gaster legacy and its invaluable contribution to quirk research. 

And the younger brother who was always playing catch-up to his older sibling’s successes, was now the third ranking hero in the whole of America, the country’s heartthrob and world’s best Uncle. 

And on occasion, when the world needed them, the three of them would come together once more to fight against villains while Grandpa Gaster and sweet, little Clara cheered them on from the safety of their couch.

end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope y'all enjoyed! Please let me know what y'all thought! All feedback is welcome!


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